Feeling Free!
by Andramion
Summary: After Tsukino Hikaru's mother has passed away, she moves in with the Tachibana family to finish high school in Iwatobi Town. As her childhood friend Makoto introduces her to his swim club and she starts hanging out with them more and more, she slowly learns the meaning of being truly free. Rated T for now, might change to M if I start to feel like writing smut :p Please R&R!
1. Chapter 1

_This is only my second fanfiction. This time I'm using more of the original characters, but I hope you like it! Rating may change eventually if I feel like writing smut :p but for now, it's safe for innocent eyes :)_

_I hope you will enjoy reading it and I greatly appreciate every __**review**__!_

* * *

**Chapter one: Arriving in Iwatobi Town!**

* * *

Tsukino Hikaru stepped out of the train and looked around. It had been a long time since she had laid eyes on this station. Smiling softly to herself, she pulled her suitcase behind her and started walking in the direction of the exit. The sun was shining bright, so bright that at first she couldn't see anything when she stepped out of the shade of the building. While her eyes adjusted, she heard excited shouts coming towards her.

"Hika-chan! Hika-chan!"

Before she even realised who it was, two weights were thrown against her as Tachibana Ran and Ren hugged her tightly. Automatically, Hikaru let go of her suitcase and hugged her arms around the twins as well.

"Hi Ran-chan, Ren-chan," she said against Ren's brown hair. "How are you two? Did you come to pick me up on your own?" She felt Ran's head move against her chest as the little girl shook her head.

"Mother is over there." The twins let go and Ran pointed in the direction of Mrs Tachibana, who was standing over by a tree, patiently waiting while her two youngest children went all-out. The calm lady waved at Hikaru, a gentle smile on her lips.

"Let's go," Hikaru said, grabbing her suitcase again and with that, leaving only one hand empty. The twins were immediately arguing over who could hold it.

"Let me carry your luggage, Hika-chan," Mrs Tachibana said when she heard what the kids were fighting over.

"Are you sure?" Hikaru asked, unsure whether or not it would be impolite to let her carry it. "I could-"

"No, I insist." The older woman peeled Hikaru's fingers off the handle and took it into her own hand with a smile. "After all, it will give Ren and Ran both a chance to hold your hand."

With one of the twins on either side of her, Hikaru walked towards the Tachibana's with a smile on her face and wondered what it was about them that made it possible for her to do so again.

* * *

That evening, Hikaru had settled into the room that Mr and Mrs Tachibana had given her to stay in. She was surprised to see that all the boxes with her stuff had already arrived and been unpacked – courtesy of Mrs Tachibana – but she was glad not to have to do it herself.

There was just one box left, the one labelled "Tsukino Suzuna", Hikaru's mother's name, and Hikaru did not look forward to having to go through that box.

Lying back on her new bed, in her new room, made the events of the past months seem long ago. Hikaru was just glad that her mother's best friend had offered to take her in after it all. She would have hated to have to stay with her horrid stepfather.

Of course, Luca di Chami, her mother's Italian boyfriend, hadn't seemed that bad at first. If Hikaru had had any objections to the man, Suzuna would have never married him.

But as soon as Shizuka fell ill, Luca and left her, letting Hikaru take care of everything while her mother was dying of cancer. Because Suzuna and Luca had not divorced, Luca still had legal custody over Hikaru – at least until she turned eighteen, but that was still almost two years away.

There was a soft knock on the door and Hikaru sat up.

"Yes?" she called and the door cracked open a bit, showing the tall boy behind it. "Makoto!" Hikaru rushed up to him as he opened the door completely to make way for her. She hugged him tightly and as he had always done when they were little, Makoto let her.

"Hi Hikaru. How was your trip?" he asked when she finally let go and he held her an arm's length away. "You look good."

Hikaru's cheeks reddened a bit, though she sure wasn't shy in his company. Complements were just not something she was at ease with. Makoto on the other hand…

"It was good, it was good," she answered his question and then looked him over. He'd grown a lot, lot taller since she last saw him over four years ago, but he was obviously still the same, kind-hearted guy. He even gave her that easy smile he'd inherited from his mother. "You don't look too bad yourself! Your mum said you were at swimming practice! Does that mean you joined the club again?"

Makoto shook his head and went over to sit on Hikaru's bed, where she joined him instantly. "They actually broke down the building. Some friends of mine and I set up a swim club at our high school." He then looked at her again. "The same one you're going to go to starting tomorrow."

Hikaru sighed and rolled her eyes. "Don't tell me about it. I just saw the uniforms."

A look of honest surprise took over Makoto's face. "What's wrong with the uniforms?" Again, Hikaru rolled her eyes. Before, she had gone to a western school, where she hadn't been obligated to wear a uniform, so she usually showed up in a pair of jeans and a zip-up hoodie over a sleeveless top. She didn't even want to think about having to put on a skirt every day, sitting in a tightly buttoned shirt and having a bow tied around her neck.

"It's just…" She sighed. "Never mind, I'll have to wear it anyway." Hikaru stared out the window, looking at the stars that were half-visible in the now cloudy sky.

"Are you sure you're okay, Karu-chan?" Makoto asked, calling Hikaru by the nickname he hadn't called her in a long time. She looked back, a wry smile on her face, knowing she could tell him 'yes', but he wouldn't believe it.

"It'll take some time. But I'm as okay as I can be, Mako." He nodded, patting the sheets once, then getting up. He turned around once more by the door.

"I'll introduce you to my friends tomorrow if you want. You can sit with us during lunch. You'll like them. Sleep well, Hikaru."

"Night, Mako-chan."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter two: Welcome to Iwatobi High!**

* * *

"Come on! You need to hurry!" Ran pushed Hikaru out to the front door, where Makoto was patiently waiting for her.

"Why?" Hikaru asked, grabbing for the piece of toast she nearly dropped on the floor. "We've still got over an hour left before school starts!" She was not happy with being rushed out the door, as her hair was still a mess and she had left the cute bracelet she bought at a train station yesterday upstairs on her desk.

"We need to get Haruka," Makoto answered as Hikaru sat down on the wooden floor to pull on her shoes. "We'll be late if we don't leave now."

As the two stepped out onto the street, Hikaru found herself looking her childhood friend up and down. As always, Makoto looked calm and nonchalant, that soft smile seemed like it was permanently painted on his face.

"So where does Haruka live then?" she eventually asked, curious as to why they had to leave so early. Maybe Haruka lived quite far? But why would they make such a big detour?

"Not too far from here." Makoto took a right turn and Hikaru ran a few paces to keep up with the boy's bigger stride.

"Now I get it!" she called out suddenly, scaring a cat that was sitting on the side of the steps they were now climbing. The little grey animal fled into the bushes. Hikaru slapped her fisted right hand into her open left one. "You want to spend some time with your girlfriend before school starts!"

Makoto's steps faltered and he was quick to explain the truth of the situation. "Haru.. ah, Haru is a boy, Hikaru."

"A boy?" Hikaru repeated after him. "Really?" Now the situation made less sense to her.

"He's a friend. I actually think you might have met him some time. He and I have been friends almost as long as the two of us have known each other."

A flash of a memory passed through Hikaru's mind, just as they turned left at the top of the stairs, into a front garden.

"Is he that quiet kid?" she asked, while Makoto pressed the bell a second time. He nodded in answer, but frowned as he stepped back and looked at the closed curtains behind the upstairs windows.

"I'm sorry, but could you wait here a minute?" He looked at her apologetically, before he turned. "I need to go pull Haru out of the bathtub."

Before Hikaru could even ask why Makoto had to pull his friend out of a bathtub – or more importantly, how he knew he had to – Makoto had vanished around the corner of the house.

* * *

As soon as the bell for lunch period rang, Hikaru's table was surrounded by her girl classmates asking whether she wanted to sit with them to enjoy her meal together. She declined every offer – she knew they were asking her out of politeness rather than actual interest.

The way from Nanase Haruka's house to the high school had been quiet. Hikaru had tried talking to Makoto's friend, but the dark-haired boy hadn't really responded and Hikaru had the situation had felt too awkward for her to talk about other things with Makoto while Haruka was there with them.

Still, she was making her way to the rooftop now, where Makoto had said he and his friends would have lunch today. The weather was still quite warm in early September and Hikaru was glad to feel the relief of the breeze on her skin as she opened the heavy door and stepped onto the rooftop.

"Haru-chan! Look what I.. oh." A young blond came to a halt just in front of her – too close for comfort in Hikaru's opinion – and looked at her with his big pink eyes. "You're not Haru-chan."

"Well observed," Hikaru said, her voice flat. She tried to look over the boy's shoulders to see if Makoto was already there, which should have been easy enough since he was smaller than her, but he kept moving just so that she couldn't see.

"Who are you?" he asked, extending his hand. "Hazuki Nagisa, first year high schooler, Treasurer for Iwatobi Swim Club!"

"You're in the swim club?" Hikaru asked, a little confused, until she looked at the boy's clothing and realised he was wearing the male version of her own uniform, including a red tie. "You're in my year?!"

Hazuki-kun nodded and his hand shot out to grab Hikaru's red ribbon. "But you're new, aren't you?" He winked at her.

"Nagisa."

The blond laid his head in his neck to look at the person standing behind him.

"Rei! Look, I found someone!"

"You can't find someone when they walk onto the roof out of their own accord."

"No, really, I found her, because I saw her first."

"Like I said, Nagisa, you can't find a person who's not lost."

While the smaller boy kept on bickering with the taller, blue-haired boy with the red glasses, Hikaru noticed someone taking his hand off of her bow. She turned to give Makoto a thankful smile, but was met with the sight of his silent friend.

"Thanks," she muttered, a little stunned that he would help her. He nodded, as if to say 'you're welcome', then walked on to sit down on the other side of the roof, his back against the railing that kept people from falling down.

Hikaru instantly followed and sat down on her knees, slightly to his right. She looked back over to the two arguing boys, who hadn't even noticed that she'd left the scene.

Makoto was now standing next to them, obviously contemplating how to end the argument between them. Hikaru shook her head as she opened the bento box Mrs Tachibana had made for her that morning.

"Are they always like this?" she asked Haruka, for the moment forgetting his taciturnity. She broke her chopsticks apart and picked up an octopus-shaped sausage, looking at him as she put it in her mouth. Haruka just looked her in the eyes. Hikaru noticed for the first time how bright blue they were.

Since he didn't answer, she just took it as a yes. She swallowed. "I think it's nice. They're all in the swim club with you two, right? I mean, I know the kid – Hazuki-kun? I know he is, because he told me, but what about the other guy? Rei?"

"I am too," Rei said as he sat down next to her. Hikaru jumped a little. She hadn't seen or heard him come over. Within a few seconds, Hazuki-kun and Makoto were sitting in their little circle as well. The latter shot her a look to see if she was doing alright in this group, then smiled and waved a hand at her.

"Everyone, this is Tsukino Hikaru, a friend of mine who is going to live with my family for a while. During that time, she will be attending school here with us, so please be welcoming to her."

* * *

"Hika-chan! Let me introduce us all to you!" Hazuki-kun stood up, a bit of egg slipping from between the slices of his sandwich as he swung his arm to include everyone sitting in the little group.

"First!" he said, his sandwich now hanging over Makoto, "Tachibana Makoto! 17 years old!"

"I don't think I need an introduction, Nagisa," Makoto said, but Hazuki-kun ignored him.

"Also known as Mako-chan! He is the wonderful captain of our team! Our motivator and tyrant at the same time!" Makoto started to protest at the term tyrant, but his younger teammate just stuck out his tongue to show he was joking.

"Ryugazaki Rei-chan! 16! He swims butterfly or brick!" The boy in question turned red at the description, covering his face with his hand as he pushed his glasses further up his nose. "He's also a really good runner, because he used to be in the track team!"

Hazuki-kun continued by hopping over to Hikaru, swinging an arm around her shoulders as he sat down in between her and Haruka

"I am Hazuki Nagisa, 16, and I am treasurer and breast stroke swimmer! I love penguins and we will be great friends, so I want you to call me Nagisa!" Hikaru felt somewhat irritated by the way he so freely handled her, but on the other hand, he reminded her of Ran, who had always been very open and playful. Still, she was kind of relieved when he removed his arm again to point to Haruka with both hands.

"And lastly, Nanase Haruka! 17! Wonder in the water and our team's greatest asset and vice-captain!" Unlike the others, Haruka didn't even look up when his name was mentioned. Nagisa leaned over to Hikaru and whispered so only she could hear it: "Also, water is his one and only true love."

When Hikaru gave him a disbelieving look, Nagisa said "It's true," out loud, leaving all the others wondering what he had said to the new girl in town.

* * *

**Thank you for reading! Please let me know what you thought by leaving me a review!**

**A big thank-you to MikaCheshire for leaving the first review on this fic!**

**NEXT UPDATE: won't be until after this weekend, because I will be out camping until sunday evening!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Iwatobi Swim Club is open!**

* * *

The afternoon didn't hold too much excitement in the form of classes. The only thing Hikaru was looking forward to was English class, which she was particularly good at, since she had followed advanced classes throughout middle school and at the start of her high school.

To her disappointment, that class consisted of vocabulary, spelling and grammar, with the reading assignments coming in a few months. She hated it, so she promised herself that she'd get Makoto to take her to a library sometime.

The classes went by slowly, the clock ticking the seconds away, but not fast enough. Eventually, when the bell did ring, Hikaru hardly even heard it. She was daydreaming away.

"Tsukino-san?" When Hikaru looked up, she saw a girl with purplish red hair – the one that had been sitting to her right and one row to the front. "School's over for today."

"Yes, I'm sorry…" Her eyes flitted to the name on the notebook that stuck out of the girl's bag. "Matsuoka Gou-san."

The girl's mouth pulled into a straight line. "It's Kou, actually."

"I'm sorry!" Hikaru quickly got up from her chair. "I ah, do you know where the swimming pool is? I told my friend I'd meet him there."

"I was just going there," Gou pulled two halves of her ponytail apart to tighten the hairband. "I'll walk you."

Chatting about class as they walked down the stairs and through the hallway, Hikaru didn't even wonder why Gou was going to the pool.

"Gou!" a voice, that Hikaru recognised as Nagisa's a moment later, called from over by the pool as they approached.

"It's Kou-" Gou started to say, but Nagisa wan't even paying attention anymore.

"You brought Hika-chan!" he shouted out loud enough for the others to come and see what was going on. Well, Makoto and Rei that is. Seeing the dark shadow in the pool cut through the water with ease, Hikaru figured that was Haruka.

Makoto jogged over and greeted her with a smile as he came to a halt. Then he turned to Gou. "Gou – Kou – this is.."

"Tsukino Hikaru, I know, she's my classmate." The redhead put her backpack down on one of the lounge chairs by the pool and grabbed a piece of paper from inside it. Wasting no more time on introductions, she started reading out what sounded like a training schedule.

"Isn't that your job as the captain?" Hikaru said to Makoto, standing on her tiptoes and speaking softly so Gou wouldn't hear.

"We needed a fourth member," he whispered back conspiratorially. "So she joined as our manager. She's really good at it. Remember the tournament I told you about?" Hikaru nodded. "If she hadn't secretly signed us up for the relay, we wouldn't be going to regionals."

"Wow, so she looks after you guys?"

"Yup."

"I imagine it's not an easy job to do."

"Nope." Makoto smiled again. "But I try to help out as much as I can. As much as she'll let me."

"MAKOTO! IN THE WATER! NOW!" Gou yelled over her shoulder and Makoto made a face as though he'd been caught trying to steal cookies before he waved goodbye, ran towards the pool and dove into an empty lane.

* * *

Hikaru sat on the lounge chair next to where Gou had first been standing and was now sitting, watching the boys swim. At first, she and Gou had chatted a bit, but the conversation had died down. The club's supervising teacher – Ms Amakata – was lying down on one of the chairs in the shade, a parasol over her head for good measure. From the looks of it, she was asleep.

As Hikaru watched, she noticed several things.

Firstly, how magnificent Haruka moved through the water. It was like he had lived in it his whole life. It was hard to miss. Even a total layman like Hikaru could see that he was something different from the other swimmers.

Secondly, how much better Makoto had gotten since she last saw him swimming. From Gou's training sheet, she'd seen that he had changed his focus from breaststroke to backstroke.

Thirdly, she was surprised by the speed and power Nagisa showed. Because he was so small, Hikaru had expected him to be slower, less experienced. But then again, she hadn't seen all those muscles on him when he was wearing his clothes.

Fourthly, Gou was eyeing the boys with such intensity that _ogling_ would have been a more accurate description. When they had been talking, she'd mentioned Makoto's back muscles, Haruka's triceps and Rei's biceps several times.

And lastly, as she watched Rei swim a rather good butterfly stroke and then struggle with anything else, she had to agree with Nagisa on the Butterfly or Brick statement.

* * *

When the training schedule had been worked through, Hikaru walked over to the short side of the pool, where Makoto was leaning his arms on the edge.

"Good job, Makoto," she said, patting him on the head. He beamed up at her.

"Thanks." He pushed off the side of the pool and drifted on his back, slowly moving himself backwards as he pushed his arms out from above his head and back in towards his thighs, as though he was making a snow angel in the water.

As he moved across the length of the lane, Hikaru walked over the tiles alongside him and they chatted a bit, about the club, about anything really. It wasn't until after a while that she noticed Haruka was staring at them from the opposite side of the swimming pool. His face was hard to read. Even though Hikaru thought she saw a tinge of surprise, she couldn't have been sure.

"Hey, Mako," she said, hunching down again as he leaned on the side. "What's up with Haruka? Does he not like me or something? He hasn't really said a word to me since this morning." Makoto had started shaking his head halfway through her question.

"That's not it, Hikaru. He's just.. he's just quiet, that's all. He's always been that way." Makoto looked over to his friend, who had just gone underwater again. "Let's just say he doesn't show affection the same way?" He smiled up at her, one of his rarer big smiles and Hikaru immediately felt better. "But I absolutely don't think he doesn't like you."

"Well… Good," Hikaru replied. "Good. Cause I was starting to worry that my charm had worn off." At that, the two old friends burst into a fit of laughter.

* * *

**So these were the 3 more introductory chapters of this story. From now on, the story will really start off properly :) promise**

**How are you liking Hikaru so far?**

**Itsy-bitsy tiny spoiler thing: yes, there's going to be a pairing between Hikaru and one of the boys from the anime. Who would you like to see Hikaru with? What would be your least favourite pairing?**

**Please let me know what you think by leaving a review!**

* * *

**Thank you to all my new followers, favouriters and reviewers:**

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	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER 4: Hikaru's got a talent too!**

* * *

"Hika-chan! Hika-chan!" a voice shouted from the hallway and Hikaru groaned softly as she picked up her backpack and stepped behind one of the gigantic bookcases. Right after that, she heard the door to the library slide open.

"Pardon me," Nagisa whispered to the student librarian, who always set by the entrance. "Have you seen Tsukino Hika-chan?"

"Light blue hair, 1.72 meters, green backpack?" the brown-haired third year asked softly.

Throught an opening on the shelves, Hikaru saw Nagisa nodding excitedly. "Yes! That one!"

"Haven't seen her." Nagisa's shoulders drooped, but Hikaru let out a breath in relief. Over the past weeks, she and Yanagi-san had become what Hikaru viewed as something somewhere between acquaintances and friends. Comrades maybe. She would come to the library to read in silence and help Yanagi-san with putting the returned books away. In return, he helped her escape Nagisa every once in a while.

As the blond retreated from the area, Hikaru poked her head around the corner to give Yanagi-san a grateful look. What she hadn't expected, was Rei standing there. Yanagi-san made an apologetic face at her.

"Hi, Tsukino-san," he said to her, looking at her calmly while holding Nagisa's sleeve.

"Hikaru!" Nagisa pulled his shirt from Rei's grasp as he turned to run over to her and hook his arm into hers.

"Nagi," Hikaru said. She'd hoped to hide from the boy who'd quickly become her friend, but apparently she was going to be dragged off to swim practice again. "Rei, I told you you could call me by my first name."

The blue-haired boy immediately blushed as he tried out Nagisa's nickname for her. "Hika…chan." He blushed even brighter and pushed his glasses up. "I don't think I can do that, Tsukino-san." He looked away and Hikaru heard Nagisa snicker next to her.

"Rei-chan can be such a schoolgirl sometimes." Then he pulled her with him and, without seeing if Rei was following, led her to the swimming pool.

* * *

Hikaru actually really liked watching their swim practice. It was great to see the boys try so hard to achieve their goals. Plus, like Gou never forgot to mention, none of them was unpleasant to look at either.

The reason she was avoiding the practices was that she kind of felt excluded. She wasn't part of the swim club; she wasn't particularly good at or interested in swimming. So she had started going to different club meetings to see if there was anything that did suit her, but so far the Art club, Literary club and Cooking club had not spiked her interest.

One of the things that really annoyed her about the swim club, and was also the reason she tried not to go to the practice, was that Haruka still wouldn't talk to her.

At times, she almost thought he was okay with her being there, but then he would go back to being unreadable and mysterious and just intensely staring at her and Mako-chan.

Really, she just couldn't figure that boy out.

* * *

As soon as the boys got out of the water, Hikaru passed Makoto and Rei their towels, while Gou gave the other two boys theirs.

"Hey! Why do Rei-chan and Mako-chan get their towels from Hika-chan?" Nagisa immediately whined. "I want to get my towel from Hika-chan!"

Hikaru rolled her eyes at him and punched him in the arm. "Don't be a baby, Nagi." She grabbed his towel and pulled it from his hands. She bunched the fabric together, holding it high above her head. "I'll give it to you if you can get it."

Nagisa grinned at her, crouching down a bit as if he was a tiger ready to pounce. When Hikaru glanced over at Makoto, he had an amused smile on his face, because he knew what would happen next.

As Nagisa jumped towards her, his hand outstretched and trying to grab the towel, Hikaru stepped to the side so quickly, Nagisa didn't know what was going on until he ran right past her.

She could hear some chuckles behind her, but now her attention was all on Nagisa. "What was that, Nagi?" she teased, "I thought you wanted your towel?"

Nagisa's face was full of bewilderment, but he still tried again. And again. And again. Each time, Hikaru dodged lightning fast, sometimes feigning to the left before going right, just to annoy Nagisa. Still, the blond boy did not stop trying.

Soon enough, both Makoto and Rei were laughing at them. "You might as well give up, Nagisa!" Rei snorted, still halfway in his chuckle. "It's not a very pretty sight!"

Makoto was a little quieter, but still commented. "Hikaru played basketball from the age of three, Nagisa. You're not going to beat her at this game."

At that, Nagisa stopped jumping and shot Hikaru a hurt look. "You could have said something. I should have known you wouldn't play fair. You're mean, Hika-chan."

Hikaru immediately felt sorry. The boy even pouted. She stuck her hand out, giving him the towel. "Here. I'm sorry, okay?"

With a grin, Nagisa snatched the cloth away. Then he jumped up and down in a circle. "I got it! I got it!"

Hikaru turned around to face Makoto with an exasperated look on her face. Her friend shrugged, then walked up to her and put an arm around her shoulder, already dried off with the towel that now hung around his neck.

"Well, Nagisa plays his own games," Makoto said with a wink and Hikaru couldn't help but smile a bright grin that faded down into a frown as soon as she saw Haruka eyeing them with that strange look in his eyes again.

* * *

**So here's another chapter! So soon after the last :p**

**I really enjoyed writing this one, because I just love Nagisa and what a good friend is in fact is to all his friends :) So I wanted to give him someone to play with :p**

**So what's with Hikaru's basketball skills? And why does Haruka keep staring at her and Makoto? Will Rei ever learn to swim properly?**

**To be answered soon :)**

**NB. The new cover image is my image of Hikaru!**

* * *

**Thanks you to everyone who read and reviewed, favourited or followed!**

**AxCxP  
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**and whoever "guest" was :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER 5: Nanase Haruka can talk!**

* * *

The next day, Hikaru was surprised to find Makoto at the door of her classroom when school was over.

"Tachibana-kun," she heard Gou say, as the red-headed girl walked over to him. Thinking it was probably swim club business, Hikaru took her time packing her bag, but when she went over to the door, Makoto was still waiting there, Gou nowhere in sight.

"Makoto," she said, looking up at him, her backpack in her arms. "Were you waiting for me?" He nodded, then looked down the hallway to where Haruka was standing.

"There's no practice today," he started. "But I can't go home yet, my teacher's asked me to stay because she wants to talk about my geography test result."

"Okay, I'll wait for you then."

Right when she said it, Makoto shook his head. He'd known she'd say that.

"No, you were going to help mother with the shopping weren't you? I was thinking you and Haru could just go on ahead without me." Then, very un-Makoto-like, he winked at her. In a hushed tone, he added. "Maybe Haru will talk to you, alright?"

Hikaru nodded. He was right. This might be the perfect opportunity to try to solve the mystery of Nanase Haruka-san.

Makoto stood up straight and smiled at her. "I'll see you at home then."

"See you," Hikaru replied, smiling back. As she walked past him, she added, whispering: "Thank you, Mako-chan." Because really, all the time she'd known him, he'd always been looking out for her.

* * *

As Haruka and Hikaru walked through the streets, the awkwardness in the silence between them dissipated. Hikaru had been stealing glances at Makoto's friend every now and then, wondering what he was thinking at that moment, but she hadn't thought of something to tell or ask him yet.

As they were nearing his house, Hikaru looked up at him again and caught his gaze. A blush crept up her neck.

"Ah.. Haruka," she started, but then she bit her lip. Would it not be rude to ask him this?

"Hmm?" was the only sound Haruka made to let her know he'd heard her. Hikaru sucked in a deep breath and when she opened her mouth again, she couldn't stop the words from coming.

"Haruka-san, I need to know what is UP with you? Do you not like me or something? Because in my four weeks here you haven't said a word to me and you always give me the stink eye when I'm talking to Makoto and I know he's your friend and I am probably taking up a lot of his time, but I try to be nice to you as well, but you don't let me and I don't know how to make you li-hmmf."

Her words were suddenly muffled by Haruka's hand covering her mouth. With her eyes wide with shock, she looked up at the boy again. She could feel the soft pads of his fingers on her lips.

"You talk so much," Haruka noted, letting her go, but somehow still silencing her. "I don't dislike you, Hikaru." He adjusted the strap of his schoolbag on his shoulder, looking away from her now. "I was just… observing." He stepped into his garden, already by the door by the time Hikaru unfroze and responded.

She quickly ran after him, throwing off her shoes as she stepped inside. "What do you mean, observing?" she asked him, following him into his living room. When he didn't answer, she called his name again. "Haruka."

At that, he stopped and let her walk around him to look him in the eye. "What do you mean, observing?" she repeated.

"Makoto…" He brushed some of his hair from his face as though that helped him think better. "He's very different around you."

Hikaru thought about that. Honestly, she couldn't see a difference between how Makoto had been when they were younger and how he was now. She had no idea what he meant.

Her confusion must have shown on her face, because Haruka continued to explain. "He's looser, more carefree. He laughs louder and he laughs more. He doesn't really do that normally."

It was like one of those cartoons on the television, where a lightbulb appears over the character's head. Suddenly, Hikaru knew what the problem was.

"He worries about you," she explained, thinking he should have known this already. "That's why he is more careful with your whole group. Someone's got to watch your backs."

Haruka shook his head. "It doesn't have to be him all the time. I want him to have fun too." When she looked away from his face for a second, she noticed his hands had balled into fists.

"He does, though." Haruka looked up from his feet and stared into the tall girl's dark purple eyes. Hikaru thought he looked lost. "Makoto can't help worrying. It's just in his nature. He's like…" She searched for the words to make Haruka understand. "Makoto's like a mother."

Haruka nodded. Still in thought, he sat down at his table, leaving Hikaru towering over him. He leaned his elbow on the table, resting his chin in his hand. Thinking again, concluded Hikaru. She sat down on her knees in front of him, cocking her head to look at him.

"He's not like that with you. That's why I was watching."

Hikaru considered his words. Thinking about it, she realised he was right. He had been, ages ago, when they were both still little kids, but she couldn't remember the last time he'd acted like that around her.

Was it because they'd known each other for such a long time? Hikaru shook her head and discarded the theory. Makoto and Haruka had known each other for a long time too after all.

"I don't know why," Hikaru told the quiet, dark-haired boy honestly. She repositioned herself so she was just sitting down next to him, neither of them looking at each other. "I really don't."

They stayed quiet for a while, listening to the clock tick the seconds away. Eventually, Hikaru sighed deeply and looked at Haruka, who was watching her again. "I'm just really glad you don't hate me."

Haruka nodded, stood up and rummaged in a cabinet close by the television. When he straightened again, he held a game console controller out to her, motioning for her to take it.

With a big smile, Hikaru took it from him and Haruka set down next to her again, his knee touching hers every now and then when they leaned over to be able to steer the cars on the television better.

* * *

"Ha! Take that!" Hikaru exclaimed while her character in the game beat the last bit of life out of Haruka's. The screen flashed 'winner' and Hikaru smiled broadly at the loser.

"Didn't think I'd beat you at this game as well, did you?"

Haruka muttered something undiscernible and Hikaru chuckled. "What did you say?"

"One more game," he said, louder and clearer this time, and he set up the rules for this new fight. As they went right back into the game, they hardly even heard the front door open.

"Haru?" Makoto's voice came from the hallway and Hikaru immediately sat up straight.

"Oh man!" she said. "I was going to help Mrs. Tachibana with the shopping! I'm dead!" She paused the game and while she got up, Makoto came into the room.

"Haru, have you seen.. ah there you are." He smiled down at her, but Hikaru couldn't help feeling guilty that he'd had to come and look for her. "Mother was wondering where you were when you weren't home when I returned."

"Makoto," Haruka successfully called the attention to himself. He held the controller up, as if to say it was his fault for asking her to play.

"I should have gone home, I know. I'm sorry." Hikaru looked around, gathering her school uniform's jacket – which she had discarded on the floor earlier – and her backpack. "I'll go now. Bye, Haruka."

Before Haruka could return his greeting or Hikaru could make it out the door, Makoto put his hand on her shoulder.

"It's okay, Hikaru. Mother's already done the shopping. She told me to be home before dinner, but we've still got some time."

Relieved, Hikaru let her jacket and backpack fall on the floor again, then sat down in her spot next to Haruka. "I'm so relieved I didn't cause trouble!"

"Well, not a lot of it," Makoto admitted. He pulled another controller from the cabinet and plugged it into the console. He sat down on Hikaru's other side, then leaned forward over the table. "Haru, have you been able to beat her yet?" he asked. When he shook his head, the boys teamed up to make sure Hikaru didn't let the wins get to her head.

* * *

**So that's chapter 5!**

**I've already written chapter 6 and might do 7 tonight as well. I'll upload 6 (and maybe 7) tomorrow, because I'll be gone again all weekend. A music festival this time! *yay***

**Chapter 6 is VERY Hikaru-orientated.**

**Please let me know your thoughts on this chapter/this story/the characters by reviewing!**

**Also, a big thank-you to everyone that reviewed, followed or favourited this story!**

**mikashiro  
Marionette-Rui  
anniewanny2**


	6. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER 6: Trying out for the club!**

_(there are loads of new names in this chapter. If you can't keep up, go to my profile and copy the tinyurl into your browser bar, it'll take you to an overview of the Basketball Team's characters)_

* * *

Ryugazaki Rei was looking at her in such an intense way, Hikaru felt chills run over her body. She breathed in sharply as she came to a sudden stop, spun around and sprinted to the other side of the sports hall.

A whistle blew and Hikaru slowed down to a jog before she changed direction again and went over to Rei.

"How…" she asked, having to breathe in between words, "did… I… do?" Rei just pushed his glasses up and looked at the clipboard he was holding.

"I think you're good to go, Tsuk.. Hikaru-san." He changed the way he addressed her as soon as the girl threw him a pointed look.

"Are you… sure?" she asked, still a little insecure. She wasn't at her best at all.

"Aaah!" Nagisa came over from his seat on the side of the court and hugged Hikaru quickly before walking around her. "Didn't Hikaru look amazing, Rei? Didn't she look beautiful?"

"Nagi," Hikaru started, but Nagisa just waved the comment he knew was coming away. "You did, Hika-chan, don't deny it. I think you're ready if Rei says you are. You wanted to do this, now you have to do it too."

Hikaru just rolled her eyes at this. It was all Nagisa's fault after all. A week ago, the day after she'd teased him by keeping his towel away from him, he'd gotten the idea that she should try out for Iwatobi's basketball team.

After their practice that day, Hikaru had admitted to the boys and Gou that she'd only stopped playing because she had to look after her mother. Then, within a few seconds it seemed to Hikaru, it was decided that she was going to get back into shape with Rei as her coach and then try to get on the team.

She'd had a look at the girls' basketball team at Iwatobi. With ten members already, Hikaru was bound to spend most of her time on the bench if she did make the team.

Two days ago, she'd even gone to their practice, to watch, and she was pleasantly surprised by the level at which they played. Especially the blonde exchange student was good. Not that the others were bad. Even the first-years Hikaru recognised from their joint P.E. class were good. Seo Sakura and Sugimoto Miyo were apparently good friends and had their own specialties. From what Hikaru had seen during P.E. and that one practice, Sakura had an extremely big amount of stamina and Miyo, who almost never took off her rabbit-ear hat, could jump higher than Hikaru had thought possible for a girl that size.

Hikaru wiped her brow with the small towel Rei passed her and turned her body so she could look at his notes on the clipboard. As she read them over, she realised that, yes, she was ready for it.

* * *

"You'll do great tomorrow, sweetie," Mrs. Tachibana assured Hikaru as she set down a plate of curry for the girl.

Ren and Ran were nice and quiet, quickly scooping up their portions, but the adults and both Hikaru and Makoto took their time to talk during dinner as well.

"She's fast, mum," Makoto said, giving Hikaru – who sat across from him – a smile. "I'm think she could even make the starters."

Hikaru shook her head and corrected Makoto. "I won't, Mako-chan. Didn't I tell you that before? There's only five starters in a team and the team already has two third-years, six second-years and two first-years who are insanely good. There is no way I'll make it to the starters."

"But you are really good too, aren't you, Hika-chan?" Ran asked in between bites, her eyes big with belief in her sort of big sister.

"She is, isn't she, Makoto?" Ren added and for the rest of dinner, everyone but Hikaru agreed that she was the best basketball player in Japan.

* * *

Flanked by the tall, mighty warriors of Iwatobi Swim Club and Nagisa, Hikaru stepped into the gym, where the Basketball Club was going to start practicing soon.

"Hey! There you are!" A brown-haired girl with a red sweatband over her forehead ran up to the group of five. "Tsukino-chan, isn't it?" She waved a hand around the gym. "Welcome to Iwatobi Basketball Club!" She hooked her arm through Hikaru's, pulling her away from the boys. Hikaru gave them a nervous look, but the boys just showed her a thumbs-up and went over to sit on the benches by the wall.

"Let me introduce you, okay? I'm Koyoma Hitomi, by the way. Nice to meet you."

"Ah, you too," Hikaru said, a little overwhelmed by Koyama-senpai's enthousiasm. The older girl clapped her hands, then threw her thick braid back over her shoulder.

"Listen up everyone! Gather 'round!" The girls came to huddle together from all over the court. "This is Tsukino Hikaru, first-year, and she'll be practicing with us today, after which we will decide whether she's good enough to join the team or not."

Soon enough, everyone was divided in groups of three. Hikaru hadn't known that third-year Amaya Nayako and second-year Fujioka Tadako, the team's manager and treasurer/secretary, didn't play in the team.

Hikaru ended up with Chrystal Hudges – the exchange student, who was glad to be able to talk a little English again since Hikaru's was so good – and Okamoto Minako – the other third-year and sister of one of the other girls.

They started out by just passing the ball around, then went on to lay-up hoop shooting and some dribbling. Soon enough, Hikaru was back in the rhythm of Basketball, thoroughly enjoying herself.

From the side, the boys' encouragements died down as they saw she was fine on her own for now. She could hear them talking to each other, though she couldn't make out the words.

When she could look over in between shots, she saw that Makoto and Nagisa were talking, while Haruka stared into the distance. Rei was intently watching her, like he had during their training, but this time, it didn't make her nervous. Instead, it made her feel like she could do this.

* * *

Bright pink hair flashed before Hikaru's eyes and instinctively, she changed the ball from her right to her left hand, dodging the slap Anzai Kyoko was trying to give it. Hikaru twisted her way out of the older girl's defense and dribbled farther towards her goal: the basket.

Near the end of the practice, Koyoma-senpai had announced that they would do a practice game to see what Hikaru really could do.

She'd been teamed with Sugimoto Miyo, Sakashita Tomoe and Okamoto Minako, against the team that consisted of Okamoto Sada, Anzai Kyoko, Seo Sakura and their ace Crystal Hudges. Captain Koyoma sat the game out so she could watch and referee.

The game had been pretty even so far. Though everyone had their better positions, and both teams had one player too little for proper tactical play, Crystal and Hikaru were pretty close with how good they were.

Okamoto Sada, being one of the tallest girls on the team with her 178 centimeters, was a really good defender, which annoyed Hikaru a little. So far, she'd been able to get past the other three girls on the opposite team with ease. They weren't used to the amount of agility Hikaru showed.

But Sada, with her height, had blocked most of her shots. She was smart too; she stayed close to the basket, so Hikaru couldn't use her tricks and dance past her on her way to it. Instead, she managed to hit the ball away from the net each time Hikaru shot.

The only way in that Hikaru saw, was by dunking the ball. Unfortunately, she wasn't too good at that. Miyo on the other hand… Hikaru looked over the bunny-eared girl, whose light green hair was now completely pulled under the hat. Miyo could jump.

Before she could even ask her, the girl nodded and raced forward. Hikaru stepped around Sakura, the last defense before Sada and dribbled only a few steps further before she bounced the ball hard on the floor.

Sada stepped back in surprise. Like Hikaru had thought, she had expected Hikaru to give Miyo an overhead pass. As the ball climbed up, Sada was too late to stop Miyo, who jumped high enough to dunk the ball through the hoop hard.

As the ball made a loud _thunk_ on the floor, Koyoma's whistle sounded and the game was over. The girls gathered together in front of their captain and Miyo, who was really happy with that last bit of flawless teamwork, jumped onto Hikaru's back.

"We won, Hika-chan!" Miyo cried out, clinging tightly to her shoulders. "We won! We won! We beat Sada-senpai!"

"I let you," an icy voice said from behind them. Hikaru turned, effectively making Miyo face Sada as well. "Don't think you can beat me that easily. I let you make that dunk, Sugimoto. I am and always will be better than – Hey!" Sada shouted abuse at her sister as Minako ruffled her dark curly hair.

"You need to lighten up, sis," Minako said, keeping one arm around Sada's neck and the other hand in the giant cloud of hair on Sada's head. "Really, you should be happy. We've got another great one on the team now, huh." She looked over to her younger captain. "Don't we, Hitomi?"

Koyoma-senpai nodded, looking at Hikaru. "I'm glad to tell you you've made the team, Tsukino-chan."

For the first time in a long while, Hikaru was slapped on the shoulder and hugged by teammates, all congratulating her on making the team. She'd missed this feeling, this camaraderie. As she looked over to the boys, she felt both happy and nervous.

Happy, because they were beaming at her, giving her thumbs-ups and waving at her excitedly and nervous because she knew Nagisa would never let her heart the end of it.

* * *

**So what did you think? I hope all the names weren't too confusing!**

**Please let me know your thoughts by leaving a review!**

**Chapter 7 won't be until after the weekend.**

**Thanks to everyone for reviewing, favouriting and following!**

**spiraltic  
xiasuke  
Platypuss Lass (that is one awesome screen name btw)  
kyuppi**


	7. Chapter 7

_**Holy hell! I went from about 500 views on Wednesday evening to over 1100 on Sunday morning? Thank you all!**_

* * *

**CHAPTER 7: A Fishy Evening**

* * *

"Haruka, do you want to stay for dinner? We're having mackerel."

Hikaru pressed pause on the game when Mrs Tachibana came into Makoto's room, where the three of them were playing Hikaru's favourite game. She shivered in the cold that came in now the door to the hallway was open.

After all this time, Hikaru was quite surprised to find out how polite Haruka could be.

"Yes, please, Mrs Tachibana, I'd love to," the dark-haired boy said, bowing his head a bit in thanks. The kind woman just smiled back at him before turning her attention to her son.

"Makoto, could you help me get the new sack of rice from the shed? It's a bit too heavy for me to grab."

Without thinking about it, Makoto got up and, like a good son, followed his mother downstairs, leaving Haruka and Hikaru alone in his room.

Hikaru stole a glance at Haruka. She was sitting cross-legged on Makoto's bed, he was in the same position, but on the floor leaning against it. She hadn't spent much time with him or any of the other boys over the past week, since she'd been so busy with the basketball club. Even her lunch breaks were taken over by Miyo and Sakura, her fellow first-years from the team. Nagisa had been complaining about it when he saw her for five minutes after both their practices the day before.

To be honest, Hikaru was glad that Makoto had asked Haruka to come along today. She had actually started to miss hanging out with the boys and now that it was Friday, she had the whole evening with both Haruka and Makoto.

When she returned from her thoughts and realised she had been staring, she found that Haruka was looking at her too, his head laid back against the matrass. Hikaru quickly looked away from those piercing blue eyes.

"Sorry!" she quickly said, watching the clock that hung on the wall over Makoto's desk. "I was just… spacing out." When she dared to glance back, he was still looking.

Before the blush could start showing up on her cheeks, she said she was going to the bathroom and tried to get off the bed. With one foot on the floor, though, her other one caught on the bed sheets and tripped her.

"Hikaru!" she heard Haruka say, in the second that she stumbled, somehow wrapping the sheet further around her foot, after which she fell over backwards, straight onto Haruka's lap.

Hikaru was glad to find out that those muscles Gou always seemed to appreciate so much were strong enough to catch her fall. She would have been even more embarrassed if she'd flat-out bowled him over as well.

She started apologising immediately, freeing herself from Makoto's bed sheets. But as soon as she tried to get up, she felt an arm sneak around her middle, keeping her in place. The sheets were thrown over her back and head by Haruka's other hand. She was all bundled up, sitting on his lap sideways, her legs thrown over one of his.

"Haruka…" Hikaru began, but he interrupted her.

"You were shivering earlier. You were cold." She nodded in confirmation. "Now you're warm, so stay put," Haruka reasoned. His hand rubbed up and down her arm, though Hikaru was keeping warm all on her own now, blushing furiously.

"Guys, we have…" Makoto was quiet for a second when he came back into his room and found the two of them in this position. Then he just smiled and went on, '… about an hour left before dinner so we can play a couple more games."

He sat down next to Haruka, knocking into Hikaru's feet. In response, Haruka uncrossed his ankles and pushed Hikaru's hips over the blanket so she turned a quarter circle, her back against his chest. Even though there was a thick layer of blanket between them, Hikaru swore she could feel his muscles against her back.

"Here," she heard Makoto say, as he passed her controller to her. Right after that, she felt Haruka's arms close around her middle, his controller in front of her as well. His face was pressed against the side of hers, though the blanket kept their cheeks from touching.

When Makoto pressed start on the game, Hikaru already knew she was going to lose this round.

* * *

The boys surpassed Hikaru's score so fast, they broke up their team after just fifteen minutes. By the time they were called down for dinner, each one on their own had tripled the amount of points Hikaru had gathered.

Somewhere in between, she'd pushed the blanket down off her head – she was getting too warm – without thinking about how that would bring Haruka's face so much closer. From that moment, there was only a thin screen made of her hair in between them, their skin touching in a few places. Hikaru could have sworn that she felt his face shift into a smile each time they beat her.

She got up quickly when Ren knocked on their door, bringing Mrs Tachibana's message that food would be served in a few minutes. After dumping the sheets back on the bed, she made her way downstairs, without looking back at either Makoto or Haruka.

"It smells lovely, Mrs Tachibana," she told Makoto's mother as soon as she walked into the dining room that attached to the kitchen, after washing her hands.

"Thanks, sweetie," she answered with a smile. "Just go and sit down at the table, I'm just putting everything on the table."

"Hi, Mr Tachibana, did you have a good day at work?" Hikaru pulled her chair back and faced the kind middle-aged man that was already sitting at the table. Ran and Ren were there too, though they were still fighting over who could sit next to Haruka.

"It was good." He took off his glasses to clean them with his shirt. "Kids," he addressed Ran and Ren, "pick a number between zero and ten!"

"Seven!" Ran immediately shouted, but Mr Tachibana shook his head.

"What are you doing the number guessing for?" Makoto asked as he and Haruka walked into the dining room too.

"The seat next to Haruka," his dad answered, then told Ren that, no, it wasn't three either.

"Five!"

"Eight?"

"Six."

"Four?"

"Two?"

"Eight?"

"I already said eight, you sod," Ran said to her brother, who just stuck out his tongue. "Nine, dad."

"Not that one either."

"What's left then?" Ren wondered out loud. Makoto had sat down on one side of the table, while Haruka drummed his fingers on the back of one of the chairs, waiting until it was decided where he would sit. "Three? No! No! I already said that!"

"Still counts as your go!" Ran immediately interjected. "Ten!"

"Not fair, dad! I didn't get a proper go!" When Mr Tachibana just shrugged, Ren quickly went on. "Zero."

Knowing that this guessing could have gone on forever, Hikaru had kind of tuned out. The number was One anyway, she thought, but it wasn't until Haruka pulled out the chair next to her that she realised she'd actually said that out loud.

"Well, Hikaru won fair and square," Mr Tachibana said to his two youngest children, which they accepted immediately, to Hikaru's great surprise.

While the twins went on to an argument over who could sit next to Makoto and while Mrs Tachibana set the last of the dishes out on the table, Hikaru stared Haruka in the eyes, wondering why he had suddenly started acting so much more familiar with her.

* * *

When they eventually settled into dinner, the table was full enough. With seven people there, they'd had to grab an extra chair from the living room to accommodate everyone at the dinner table.

Mr and Mrs Tachibana sat at the heads of the table, Haruka and Hikaru on one side, the twins with Makoto in between on the other.

Ran was particularly chatty that evening, telling everyone about a new art project her class had started today. Hikaru was relieved with the conversation, because it meant they probably wouldn't notice that she was being a lot quieter than she normally was.

After a while, Hikaru noticed Haruka staring at her still half-filled bowl. Without even rolling her eyes, she moved her pieces of mackerel into his bowl. She was too nervous to eat a proper amount of food anyway.

Haruka politely thanked her for the fish he seemed to like so much. When Hikaru looked back at her own bowl, she was surprised to see another piece of mackerel still there.

A pair of chopsticks moved into her line of sight and she followed the arm up to see Makoto was moving food from his bowl across the table.

"You might as well have some of mine," Makoto said with a smile, but Hikaru shook her head, moving her own chopsticks to stop her childhood friend from dropping another piece into her bowl.

"I'm full, Mako-chan."

"You're can't be after only half a portion." He cocked his head, looking at her curiously. Mrs Tachibana immediately went into concerned mother overdrive, standing up and checking Hikaru's temperature by laying a hand on her forehead.

"I'm fine, I'm just not hungry," she said, to try and calm everyone down. It was just like them to start worrying over such a small thing. Makoto didn't get that habit out of nowhere. She moved the last bit of fish to Haruka's bowl too, since Makoto refused to take it back.

"Hikaru? How is it going with your basketball?" Mr Tachibana asked, to take the attention away from being worried, Hikaru assumed.

"It's going well," she answered truthfully. "I've been able to keep up with the practices easily this last week, so that's good."

"Oh, I remember when you were little, you used to make Makoto play basketball with you." Mrs Tachibana sat back down on her seat, putting her elbow on the table and resting her chin in the palm of her hand. "You two would run around after that orange ball that was bigger than you own heads."

Hikaru chuckled. She remembered that all too well. "I also made Makoto lift me up on his shoulders so I could reach the basket and dunk."

"But you never could," Makoto added. "We were both too little." He grinned at the memory and Hikaru grinned back at him. It wasn't hard to admit that all her fond childhood memories revolved around this boy now sitting across from her.

"But really," Mrs Tachibana went on, "it's almost like watching a ballet when you play basketball, Hikaru. Doesn't she look beautiful when she plays?" She addressed that last question to the two teenaged boys at the table and though Hikaru knew for sure Makoto's reply would hold nothing but praise for her, she was suddenly extremely nervous about hearing Haruka's answer.

"Hm-hm! You should have seen her in the practice game when she tried out for the team!" As she had thought, Makoto was already praising her. This time, she only managed a wobbly smile in his direction. "She blew right past the defence. Like you said, it almost looks like ballet. Absolutely stunning, don't you think, Haru?"

And there it was, that little leap in her heartbeat as she waited for a reply, a nod, a hum in either agreement of disagreement, but he wouldn't give any of those.

Instead, Hikaru was surprised to feel a hand on her head, patting her hair a few times before it went away again. And somehow, that was a thousand times better than him agreeing with anyone.

* * *

**Thank you all so much for reading this story!**

_Please let me know your thoughts on this chapter as well by leaving me a review! Your opinions are greatly appreciated!_

**Also, a big thank you to everyone that has subscribed, reviewed, or clicked favourite, a group of people of whom the most recent additions are:**

**Starzway  
Kurai Gekkou  
wishica  
Doieversleep  
animenarutorox39  
SarcasticSarcasm  
HoneyGrl **(I read this as Honey Grill at first and that made me think of Buffalo Wings and made me hungry)**  
pinkyderek  
IAmTheRedMaskHeWears  
Kuroarisa**


	8. Chapter 8

So I was without internet, telly and landline for the past three days, making it _impossible_ for me to post this chapter.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy it! Here it is:

* * *

**CHAPTER 8: A storm is coming!**

* * *

_Sometimes,_ Hikaru thought, _I think it would be easier if I didn't get along with boys so well._

All around, people were staring at her. Or more accurately, her group. Walking through the shopping centre with Makoto, Haruka, Rei and Nagisa made her stand out. Especially since Nagisa, like always, constantly found reasons to touch her arm, her back, her shoulder.

Being the only girl in the group, she caught most of the stares being thrown in their direction, though. And it was busy enough that Saturday afternoon to catch a _lot_ of them.

Ran had bullied her into wearing a dress that morning, saying it was "definitely something to make the boys notice her more", something that was in Ran's eyes necessary because Hikaru hadn't had a single date since she'd arrived in Iwatobi Town.

The dress was a silly, thin summer thing; white with a ribbon around the waist and some lace at the bottom of the skirt, that barely reached her knees. Though Hikaru was used to showing some skin in her Basketball shorts, she felt a lot more uncomfortable now that it was a skirt.

She was growing cold too. October wasn't the best month to walk around in a summer dress. Because of that, she hadn't tried to avoid any of Nagisa's (warm) hugs. Hence the stares.

"So where are we going first?" Rei asked anyone who would answer. "What do we need to get? Gou texted something about stuff for the club."

"Banners," Hikaru answered. Even though she wasn't in the swim team, Gou sent her a copy of every message that involved the boys. "Since regionals are coming up, I was thinking of making you guys some banners. That way, us girls can support you properly. Some of my teammates are thinking of coming along to your regionals as well."

"Ooooh, that'd be nice!" Nagisa clapped his hands together excitedly. "Hear that? We'll have a full group of supporters!"

Rei nodded, a smile on his face. "Okay, but what else?"

"I want to get new swimming trunks." Haruka, of course. When Hikaru thought about it, she'd only ever seen him in the same pair of swimming trunks, so it wasn't such a surprise he'd want another pair.

"I'd already taken that into account," Rei answered, a dry tone to his voice. Hikaru felt she was missing something.

"I wanted to get that CD of that new American rock band called The Outfall." Nagisa turned his attention to Hikaru. "They're really good, Hi-chan, they've got violins and stuff as well."

"Hmm, I'll come listen to it some time. I need to buy some new sports clothes, cause I've been using the ones from my old team. I need different colours."

"So, banners, a CD, swimwear for Haruka and sports clothing for Hikaru?" Rei tapped one of the fingers on his left hand with each item he called. "That's it?"

"If we have time, I want to try to find my brother and sister a puzzle book. They've been asking for a new one for a while." Hikaru frowned at that. Since when did Ren and Ran enjoy puzzle books? She hadn't once heard them about it. When she looked over at Makoto, he was staring her down with a look that said 'please don't ask me about it'. Hikaru shrugged to let him know she wouldn't.

"So let's go to Sports Zero first," Rei continued his planning of the trip, "then the stationery shop around the corner from there and lastly the CD shop a little further down the street?"

The boys all agreed and started walking off, fast enough for both Hikaru and Nagisa to have to up their pace to keep up with them.

"Rei," Hikaru addressed her fellow first-year student. "Don't you need to get anything? I mean, I hope you didn't come along for nothing."

"I wanted to come," Rei reassured her, "it's not really your job to look for banners for us, is it?" He pushed his glasses up in that typical way of his.

"Yes, well, as a fan of the swim club, I can hardly leave the supporters' job to the club members, can I?"

* * *

"What do you think?"

At the question, Hikaru poked her head out of the fitting room stall, making sure the rest of her body was still hidden behind the curtain. Haruka was standing just outside it, wearing black swimwear with dark purple accents, much like the ones she'd seen him wear before.

"Are you sure you want to get those?" she asked him, letting the curtain fall back in place. She took the blue shorts off the hanger, pulling them on quickly. They fit nicely, but she wasn't sure how much she'd like them if she had to run in them.

"Why?" Haruka's question came from just outside. He was standing right on the other side of the curtain.

"Well, it's just like your old pair, isn't it?"

"Old pair?" He sounded genuinely confused.

"You know, those were also black with purple stripes." She pulled the curtain to the side. As Haruka made place for her in front of the mirror outside the stalls, she jogged in place, lifting her knees up high.

"Haru-chan has a lot of the same swimming trunks, Hi-chan," Nagisa – who had been waiting on one of the chairs to the side of the stalls – said. "This will just be the umpteenth pair in his collection of black and purple swimwear."

"Really?" Hikaru looked to her left, where Haruka had almost stepped back into the stall. She jumped up.

"They fit differently," Haruka offered as what Hikaru thought was supposed to be an explanation. Then he disappeared behind his curtain.

"How are your shorts, Hikaru?" Rei came up to ask her, looking at how the blue shorts reached more than halfway down her thighs. Hikaru had gotten over the fact that Rei would never really get used to calling her by a less formal name, like Nagisa had done immediately. At least he didn't address her as Tsukino-san anymore.

"Perfect," she replied, smiling up at him. They didn't ride up when she jumped or jogged, so that was always a good thing. "I believe they're the right colour blue, so I'm done here."

As she got back into her own clothes, changing out of the shorts and the tank top she'd fitted on, she realised something. "Guys," she called out, knowing they'd still be close enough to hear, "where's Makoto gone?"

* * *

"There you are!" Hikaru closed the last bit of distance between her and her childhood friend a little faster than was socially acceptable, almost running.

As though he snapped out of a trance, Makoto looked up. He looked a little confused, as though he didn't really know how he'd gotten there.

"Hikaru?" She grabbed his arm, relieved to see he was alright, physically at least.

"Why did you just disappear on us? You could at least make sure to pick up your mobile phone, Makoto. You had me worried."

Makoto patted the hand she had on his arm. "I'm sorry, Hika-chan. I was watching the news…"

Hikaru lifted her head, watching the screens in the front of the electronics store. Though the sound was off, the subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing had been turned on.

"A storm?" she asked, as the weather forecast came on. Makoto nodded, giving her a curt 'hmm' in confirmation. Suddenly, his whole behaviour made sense to her.

She looked back at the screens, watching as the weather girl explained the predicted route of the storm. To Hikaru's shock, it was an actual typhoon, not just a regular storm. No wonder Makoto had that slightly panicked look in his eyes.

Hikaru wasn't in Iwatobi when that typhoon hit years ago. But when Makoto took her to the old fisherman's grave when she came over next, she had realised just how much this friendly old man had meant to him.

Now she looked up at her friend. His skin was pasty, a little pale under the summer tan that still lingered. You could have easily missed it if you didn't look properly. He was staring at the screen, even though the weather forecast was over.

"Mako-chi?" It had been so, so long since she'd called him that. He averted his eyes from the children's program, looking her in the eyes instead.

"Ah, I'm sorry Hikaru, I didn't mean to worry you." His smile appeared again, but Hikaru still frowned. This was not his usual smile and she'd thought Makoto knew better than to pretend to be okay around her.

"Mako-chan!" she heard Nagisa call out to him from behind her. The blond came to a halt next to her. "There you are! We've been looking for you for over half an hour! Good job, Hi-chan!"

The other two joined them straight after Nagisa called Rei's mobile phone.

"Makoto," Haruka asked immediately, obviously seeing through his taller friend's smile, just like Hikaru, "are you alright?"

"I'm okay." Makoto cocked his head slightly to the right and his head flipped up in the motion. Hikaru could see how others would be fooled by his happy-go-lucky attitude. She slid her hand down from his arm and laced her fingers with his.

"Do you want to go home?"

He squeezed her hand. "We're here now anyway, aren't we? We might as well finish shopping first."

* * *

It started drizzling when Haruka, Makoto and Hikaru stepped off the train at their stop. Nagisa and Rei lived close enough to the shops to not have to take the train, so it had just been the three friends on the trip to their neighbourhood.

Not a word had been said.

Haruka was naturally quiet and Makoto had dropped the pretence around his two childhood friends. Hikaru hadn't known what to say at all. The silence had been loaded with the tension Makoto seemed to radiate.

As they walked to their houses, umbrella's up, Haruka was the first to speak.

"I want to go swim."

"You can't." Both Hikaru and Haruka looked up when they heard Makoto's harsh tone.

"Mako-" Hikaru began, but she was cut off.

"You can't swim in a storm, Haru. You know how we ended up last time." Hikaru watched Haruka's eyes grow big and she wondered what passed between the two boys in that moment.

Completely clueless as to what Makoto was referring to, Hikaru thought it best if she just walked on and let the boys alone. When she started walking again though, the boys immediately followed.

They reached the split, where Haruka had to go up the stairs straight on to the higher level of the street, and where Hikaru and Makoto went up the small steps to their front door.

Even though the boys did say bye to each other, Hikaru felt something was off. Most likely, it was Makoto's mood.

"What were you talking about?" she asked Makoto, as soon as Haruka was out of earshot. "Last time?"

"Training camp at the beach. Rei went out to train more at night, but a storm started. He almost drowned. I tried to save him, but…"

"The ocean?" Hikaru guessed. Makoto nodded. He pulled his house keys from his pocket and started opening the lock.

"It's a good thing Haru woke up. He ended up having to save me while Nagisa pulled Rei out." The door swung open and Hikaru could hear Ran and Ren's voices up stairs, though they didn't really register in her mind.

"Haruka saved your life?"

"Yeah, he did." Makoto stepped in, closing the umbrella just before and kicking off his shoes before he walked in further. When Hikaru didn't follow, he turned around, a confused look on his face. "Aren't you coming in?"

Hikaru shook her head. "I'll be back in a minute." With that, she pulled the door shut again, ran down the stairs and up the ones leading to Haruka's. She could still see his umbrella turn the corner at the top of the stairs.

"Haruka!" She ran up the slippery stairs, two steps at a time, turning the corner as soon as she reached the top. Haruka was still getting into the house.

"Haru!" Hikaru called again. The dark-haired boy stopped closing the door when he heard her voice. Hikaru dropped her umbrella on the floor just under the dry bit of space in front of the door, stepped inside and beamed at Haruka's confused face. Without giving herself a second to start hesitating, she threw her arms around his waist, pressing herself up close to him.

"Thank you," she muttered, "thank you, thank you."

After a frozen moment, Haruka's arms closed around her too, one of his hands petting her hair.

"For what?" she heard him ask. She leaned back, looking him in the eyes.

"For saving my Makoto," she explained. Then, before she could lose the courage, she tipped her head back a bit and kissed him.

* * *

Hikaru paced around the house, thinking about how that kiss she'd meant for Haruka's cheek ended up a lot closer to his mouth than she had planned.

On the one hand, she was glad she hadn't missed her mark completely and actually, really _kissed_ him, but now that she'd _almost_ done it, she wondered what it would be like.

"Hikaru?" She looked up and found Mrs Tachibana was watching her. "Are you okay, darling?" She was sitting at the dinner table, peeling potatoes for the western recipe she was trying out that evening.

"Ah, yes, I'm fine," Hikaru answered, walking towards the table and pulling out a seat across from Mrs Tachibana.

"You seem very restless."

"It's just…" Hikaru made a vague gesture, "the weather I guess. Makoto isn't feeling too great either."

"Well, I guess that's understandable." Mrs Tachibana stopped peeling the potato she was holding. "I wonder if he'll ever stop fearing this kind of weather." Then she smiled, her sad mood having disappeared again. "I just wish there was something I could do to help."

"Yeah, me too," Hikaru mumbled, resting her chin on her hands. She watched as Mrs Tachibana went on preparing for dinner, even offered her assistance, though it was declined. As it slowly grew darker and darker outside, the clouds packing, Hikaru started forming an idea.

When she relayed it Mrs Tachibana, the older woman wholeheartedly agreed with her plans.

* * *

**What is Hikaru planning?**

**And, are those the sparks of new love?**

**Find out next chapter ;)**

**Please let me know what you thought by leaving a review. I know I am nagging you guys about them, but really, over a hundred views per chapter and just two reviews posted on the last three chapters? It's making me nervous xD **(yes I am an annoying insecure writer, sorry)

**Anyway, a big thank you to all you lovelies who've been reading my story, clicking favourite and follow and leaving reviews!**

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	9. Chapter 9

_Here's chapter 9, everyone! It's a continuation of the previous chapter, so it takes place on the same day as they went shopping! I hope you'll enjoy it!_

* * *

**CHAPTER 9: Chunks of chocolate and secrets to share!**

* * *

The Tachibana Family's bell rang a little after they'd finished having dinner. Hikaru got up as fast as she could, insisted she opened the door, because "no, no, Makoto you only just finished your dinner, you need to sit down", and then walked into the hallway as fast as she could without raising suspicion.

"Come in," she said to her four guests, who had apparently all arrived at the same time. "But be quiet, they're all in the dining room." With a finger in her lips, she gestured for them to walk up the stairs and leave their bags in the room.

When they were halfway up the stairs, she said, a little louder than necessary: "No thank you, we don't want to buy anything!" and shut the door loudly.

"Who was it, Hikaru?" Makoto said behind her and she jumped up.

"My God, you scared me, Makoto!" She laughed nervously. Had he noticed there wasn't anyone at the door when she shut it? "It was just… someone selling newspapers?"

"At eight in the evening?"

"It's an evening newspaper?"

When Makoto leaned back against the wall, she sighed. She hadn't thought she could fool him for long, but this was exceptionally short.

The bell rang again. Before she could open the door, Makoto had already reached over and done so.

"Hi, where do I put my…" Gou looked up at Makoto, still holding her air matrass up for him to see. It took her a second to snap out of it and hide it behind her back. "Makoto… where's Hikaru?"

In answer, he opened the door further to reveal the blue-haired girl standing in the hallway, her shoulders drooping in defeat. As he stepped to the side so Gou could come in, he asked Hikaru: "So what exactly is going on here?"

Hikaru sighed again, loudly. "Come on, I'll show you." She stepped a little further down the hall, on her way to the stairs. "You can come up too, Gou."

"It's… oh never mind." In thought, Hikaru slapped herself for not immediately remembering that the girl preferred to be called Kou. As they trudged up the stairs, she suddenly became nervous. What if Makoto didn't like this surprise?

"My room's in here, Kou," Hikaru said, knocking on the door to her own room.

"Come on in!" she heard inside and she watched Makoto's eyes grow big. She smirked. So he hadn't noticed the people coming in. She opened the door, telling Gou she could set up her bed next to Sakura and Miyo.

"You're having a slumber party?" Makoto asked as they walked on to his room.

"No," Hikaru corrected him as she opened his door to reveal Haruka sitting on Makoto's bed and Rei and Nagisa still setting up their beds. She smiled at his expression. "_We_ are."

* * *

"Okay, so now it's my turn right?" Gou asked, a blush still on her face from answering Nagisa's question on what exactly was going on between her and Samezuka Acedemy's Swim Team captain.

"Yes," Nagisa answered with a grin. He was wearing red PJs that came all the way up to his neck and he was sitting with his arms around his knees. He looked comfy and warm. "You can ask anyone any question."

Gou thought that one over, her hand rubbing her chin as though she was an evil genius with a beard. "Okay, I know one." She turned slightly, facing the girl with pastel pink hair next to her. They'd formed a circle, sitting on the sleeping mats and air matrasses in the boys' room.

"Seo-san, is there anyone here that you like? As in, romantically?" Sakura's eyes grew big with surprise, but she just chuckled and said yes. Hikaru giggled as well, knowing who it was, but not spoiling the surprise for the others.

"Really?" Gou got all excited now. "Who is it?"

"One question, Matsuoka-san, not two." Sakura stuck her tongue out. "Tachibana-senpai, I've got a question for you. How long have you and Hika-chan known each other?"

Makoto smiled. "Easy, that one. All Hikaru's life, really. My parents and I, I was only seven months old, we were the first to visit her in the hospital where she was born."

"So your parents were friends then?" Miyo asked, addressing the question to Hikaru.

"Not that it's your go to ask a question," Hikaru started, winking at Miyo. The younger girl immediately pulled the bunny ears on her hat in front of her face. "Sorry!"

"But yes, our mothers were best friends." At the mention of her mother, Hikaru's hand automatically went up to touch the necklace her mother had given her when she turned fifteen.

Makoto, seeing Hikaru's gesture, quickly tried to change the subject by asking his own question. But since Makoto was 1. a really nice guy and 2. a little distracted by the storm raging outside, it was anything but an interesting or embarrassing question.

As the game continued, Hikaru quietly listened, snacking on the squares of chocolate and soft marshmallow cushions they'd put in bowls in the middle of the circle.

Rei went on to ask Miyo what her favourite sport was, to which the answer was of course basketball. Rei just adjusted his glasses to hide his embarrassment for not knowing the question up front.

Miyo asked Gou whether she had any siblings. Hikaru noticed the atmosphere chilling when she answered that yes, she had a one-year-older brother. Hikaru wondered why Gou'd never introduced her brother to her and why she'd never run into him at school.

Gou asked Haruka whether he could draw portraits. Hikaru was surprised to find out he was actually really good at creating art.

Haruka went on to ask Sakura if she liked swimming, but she didn't really enjoy or dislike it, which made Haruka lose interest in the rest of her answer.

Sakura wanted to know if Nagisa had any other hobbies than swimming. After answering, Nagisa's eyes slid towards Hikaru and narrowed considerably. Suddenly, the blond looked nothing like his regular, innocent, childlike self and very much like a mature boy of sixteen with trouble on his mind.

"Hi-chan…" He started and Hikaru felt her heart leap a bit, suddenly nervous for his question. "You've been very quiet so far. I think I should ask you a question." He copied Gou's way of thinking, rubbing his hand over his chin and then tapping his cheek while looking up.

"Nagi…" Hikaru started, wanting to ask Nagisa to just get on with the question, just when he did that.

"Who was your first kiss, Hi-chan?"

* * *

"EEEEEEEEEEEH?!" Makoto sat up straight immediately and leaned forward, his arms outstretched and hands on his knees. "Nagisa, you can't ask her that!" Hikaru watched a blush spread over his cheeks, at the same time it appeared on hers.

Everyone was just quiet after Makoto's outburst, studying the two glowing faces intently. She saw realisation dawning on most faces.

"Hi-chan…" Nagisa looked at her questioningly, then turned his gaze on Makoto, who was now staring at his own lap. "Mako-chan…"

"Oh my!" Gou excitedly let out and Hikaru knew the secret was out. She looked up to meet the redhead's pink eyes. "You and Makoto kissed?!"

Now the whole group sucked in a breath in shock. Hikaru actually thought they were blowing the whole situation up.

"When?" Miyo asked, the ears of her hat hanging down her back – her face completely uncovered so she could see Hikaru's reaction better.

Hikaru didn't say a word, not sure whether or not Makoto was okay with her telling them. When Miyo realised Hikaru wasn't talking, she repeated the question to Makoto. "Tachibana-senpai, Hikaru won't tell me."

"Mako-chan! Won't you tell us?" Nagisa begged together with Miyo, throwing his arms around Makoto's shoulders.

Gou was just as curious. "When did this happen? Please, Makoto?"

"She doesn't have to answer."

All eyes turned to Haruka, who was lying down on his stomach just out of the circle now that Nagisa, Miyo and Gou had moved to pester Makoto. He had his arms crossed in front of him, his chin resting on the wrist on top.

Hikaru was glad that it was quiet for a second. "Thank you, Haruka," she said, smiling at him. "But I don't mind. I just thought maybe Makoto…"

"No," Makoto said when Hikaru let the question linger. "I don't really mind either." He softly pushed Nagisa's arm off of him. "Go ahead if you want to."

The curious first-years' eyes turned on her again and she rolled her eyes. Then she cleared her throat.

"There's not much to say though. I was twelve and I was moving away further, so I wouldn't see him that much anymore. We were saying goodbye."

"But who kissed who? Details, Hi-chan!"

"Ah, I kissed her," Makoto answered for her. Hikaru blushed a little more at the vague half-memory of his green eyes coming closer and closer to her before the lids fell shut. "And then the next time I saw her was when she came to live here. So there's nothing more to the story, Nagisa."

"Ah, really?" Gou sat back down in her previous spot, disappointed. "I thought maybe you two had dated for a while…"

"Yeah, me too," Miyo said, with a tone in her voice that was just as sad as Gou's. "You two seem so close."

"Well, we are," Hikaru said, feeling a pang of pain when she imagined the others thinking she and Makoto weren't close. "We are thick as thieves, but then again, like Makoto said, we've known each other our whole lives."

"Hmm, well, that makes sense," Nagisa said, nodding. "But it would have been much more interesting if you guys were in love with each other."

After that, the game went on, but Nagisa's last comment sat uneasy in Hikaru's stomach. She glanced at her brown-haired friend more than once, wondering if maybe, that kiss back then had meant as much to him as it had to her.

Then she looked at Haruka, who was still lying down, only responding to the game when he was being involved.

_Sure, _she thought, _it would have been much more interesting if Makoto and I were in love with each other._ She sighed, focussing on Rei telling an embarrassing story. _But also a lot more complicated._

* * *

**_SORTA KINDA SPOILER THINGS!_**

_I noticed that pretty much every single one of you ships Hikaru with Makoto, and I have been on the Haruka tour lately, so I thought I'd give you some HikaMako goodness :) more of that coming up._

_I love writing interactions between Hikaru & Makoto, Makoto & Haruka and Hikaru & Nagisa. Rei is one of my favourite characters in the anime, so I think I'll be giving him some more spotlight later on too :)_

_Also, I am writing some Hikaru&Makoto smut, which I'll be posting separately somewhere in the next few days, because:  
__**1.**__ it is completely loose from this story and does not fit into the storyline  
__**2.**__ I think I wanna keep this story rated T so it shows up in the first search for Free! fanfics :)  
Maybe I'll write some smut for every pairing._

_PLUS: for the ones wondering if Rin is going to be in this story; YES, he wil be, but not until a bit later._

* * *

**_NOT _**_SORTA KINDA SPOILER THINGS!_

**As always, thank you so much for all your lovely reviews, I enjoy reading them very much and they give me an idea of your thoughts other than "I like it", so don't forget to keep leaving them!**

**A shoutout to everyone who left me reviews, clicked favourite or follow since I posted the last chapter:**

**SnowyLife12  
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	10. Chapter 10

**CHAPTER 10: Complications arise!**

* * *

Hikaru was woken up by thunder and lightning in the middle of the night. The dream she was having before quickly slipped from her mind, like water that flows through the cracks between your fingers. To her left, she could see Gou, Sakura and Miyo were still fast asleep, all rolled up in bundles of blankets.

She got out of bed to go the bathroom. When she was washing her hands, she looked in the mirror. Her light hair was sticking out every way possible and dark circles were forming under her eyes. They'd really stayed up too late.

She patted her own cheeks a little, until she didn't feel so groggy anymore, then went out into the hallway again. There, she looked out the window.

Though it was completely dark out, she could discern some shadows – trees bending in the howling wind, houses standing strong. A shaft of lightning shot through the sky, bringing colour to the outside world for a split second.

"Hikaru?" She turned towards the voice, seeing a sleepy Makoto come out of his room, rubbing his eyes.

"Ah, sorry," she said to him, walking over from by the window. "The thunder woke me up, I'm just coming from the bathroom."

"Yeah, same for me." He put a hand on her shoulder, just before she wanted to turn away and go back to bed. She looked up at him. "Thanks for doing this for me. Tonight I mean."

She smiled, shaking her head. "It's no trouble. Anything for you, Makoto. I'm glad I could take your mind off of things."

He let her shoulder go, smiling too. "How embarrassing was it though, everybody finding out about our first kiss!" He rubbed the back of his neck, now grinning nervously.

"Ah, yeah." Hikaru looked down, gripping the hem of her nightgown with her fist. "It was. Kind of…" To be honest, this situation was more awkward to her than telling everyone about that kiss. She and Makoto had never talked about it. How could they have? She'd moved away and hadn't visited again until she came to live here a few weeks ago.

A silence stretched between them. Hikaru could count the number of times a silence had been awkward between them on one hand, but this was one of them. Even though she could practically grab the tension in the air, she gathered her courage, ready to finally, after four years, talk about that moment they'd shared, and let go of her nightgown, lifting her gaze to look Makoto in the eyes as she asked him about it.

"Mako-"

"I shouldn't be keeping you up" Makoto said at the same time, obviously wanting to change the subject. "You just go back to bed." He ruffled her hair, a big, though slightly nervous, smile on his lips. "Goodnight, Hikaru."

Hikaru puffed out her cheeks when the bathroom door shut behind him with a thud. How was she supposed to talk to him if he was avoiding doing it?

_How immature_, she thought, as she crawled back into her bed and snuggled under her duvet. She'd always thought of Makoto as someone older than his age; he'd always looked after her, always been the one to worry about everyone else's wellbeing while she was the one playing without a care in the world.

But as she pulled the duvet over her shoulders and up to her chin, she started wondering whether maybe, she should start viewing him a little less as the Makoto she'd always seen him as and some more as a regular seventeen-year-old boy.

* * *

On Sunday morning, Hikaru woke up to the sound of the other girls' voices. Still groggy, she wondered where she was and tried to rub the sleep from her eyes.

"Hikaru! You're up!" Big, round eyes appeared in front of her face, just as she was sitting up, and she crawled back against the headboard in reaction.

"Don't spook me!" she screeched, a lot louder than necessary.

Immediately, the door was swung open, revealing Rei and Nagisa on the other side. "What's going on?" Nagisa inquired, while Rei had pulled the top of his PJs halfway over his face.

Sakura let out a little squeal, an exasperated "BOYS!" following it as she pulled her duvet up and Rei's covered his face with his hands.

"Sorry!" he said, his voice muffled. "We heard someone scream!" He turned his back towards the girls. "Sorry," he repeated.

"Nagi, you turn around too." Hikaru gave the blond a strict look and he did what she said, though not before winking at her.

"But what happened?" Nagisa tapped his fingers on the doorframe. "Who screamed?"

"Nobody-" Hikaru wanted to say, but before she could finish the word, the three other girls spit out her name and laughed loudly.

"She's a scaredy-cat!" Gou pointed at Hikaru, falling back on her matrass and giggling uncontrollably.

"No, I'm not, Gou," Hikaru corrected, laying emphasis on the girl's name, "you just caught me off-guard."

The red-head stopped laughing when Hikaru didn't call her by her preferred name, though she didn't mention it.

"Rei? Nagisa?" From over Nagisa's shoulder, Haruka peeked in, seeing what the ruckus was about. When he locked eyes with Hikaru, the question evident in his eyes, she just rolled her eyes.

"Mother says breakfast is almost ready," Makoto's voice travelled up the stairs and into the room. "Eh, why are we all outside the girls' room?" He too appeared by the door, looking in to see if anything was going on.

Sakura had had enough of the boys' behaviour. "Oh, for God's sake! Will you guys just close the door and let us girls get ready!"

* * *

"So when are your regionals?" Miyo asked, waving her chopsticks at the person she was talking to.

They were all sitting at the dinner table, two fold-up chairs added to the normal ones. The rest of the Tachibana family had already had breakfast and Mrs Tachibana had really outdone herself for the eight teens in the house.

As Hikaru quietly ate her miso soup – using a spoon, because she was an absolute klutz with chopsticks and didn't like drinking from her bowl – she listened to the conversation going on.

So far, all topics had been safe: how was your night, last night was fun, we should have parties more often, wow Rei your hair looks funny in the morning, look Miyo is even wearing bunny slippers.

"Next weekend actually," Makoto answered Miyo's question and Hikaru looked up from her food.

"Next weekend?!" she and her teammates repeated at the same time. Hikaru looked from Miyo to Sakura to Makoto and back again, a panic bubbling up in her chest.

"What's the problem with it being next weekend?" Rei asked, pushing his glasses up.

"That means it's at the same time as our basketball regionals!" Hikaru put her spoon down on the table and leaned back against her chair. "I can't believe this."

"Do you have to play?" Haruka asked, pausing his attack on the broiled salmon.

"None of us is part of the starting team," Sakura explained, shaking her head.

"But we might have to switch in," Miyo finished her friend's sentence. Both looked disappointed. Hikaru didn't want to imagine how bad her own expression must have been in that moment.

"Ugh!" Hikaru exclaimed, throwing her arms up in defeat. "I don't want to have to choose! I want to come and support you guys, but I can't just not be there for my teammates!"

Nagisa was quick to make his way around the table to her chair. As he stood behind her chair, hugging her shoulders to his chest, he told her they'd figure something out.

Hikaru hoped to whoever was up there he was right.

* * *

**A/N: I am sorry for this crappy chapter, but I needed something to bridge to what I have in mind for the next chapter. On top of that, I've been redecorating my room and my new bed/sofa is so incredibly comfortable that I can't concentrate on writing when I sit on it, so I've been a little slow on the writing part.**

**Also: I have been getting several questions in my PM box. regarding the storyline and Hikaru herself. One of the questions was whether I could maybe post some trivia about Hikaru.**

**SO. I have decided I'll do a little Q&A chapter after the next chapter, answering all your questions that don't make me give you spoilers.**

**If you have a question you'd like answered, please send it to me in a PM or leave it in a review! Also, if you don't necessarily have a question, you could leave some trivia you'd like me to give you (as in, favourite food, fav colour, birthday, that kind of thing).**

* * *

**NEWS IN THE SHIPPING DEPARTMENT: the first HaruxHika and (for some reason) HikaxRin shippers have come forward! Spread the news! Spread the news and sound the bells! Someone likes HaruxHika better than MakoxHika!**

* * *

**As always, thank you for reading and please leave me a review with your thoughts on the chapter or the story in general! I enjoy reading them and they give me a lot of motivation to keep writing!**

**A big thank you goes out to everyone who reviewed or clicked favourite or follow since the last chapter I posted!**

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SuperAnimeGirl97  
maileetheepic  
**


	11. Chapter 11

**CHAPTER 11: Hikaru is on a date?!**

* * *

On Wednesday afternoon, Hikaru tapped her foot impatiently as she waited for Nagisa to show up at the front gate of their school. She'd told Makoto and Haruka to just go ahead and walk home without her, since she'd gotten Nagisa's text asking her to wait for him just after her last period. Both the swim club and the basketball club had Wednesday as their rest day, so there was no practice to go to.

Hikaru glanced down at her watch. She'd been waiting for ten minutes already. Had Nagisa forgotten about her and left for the train station? Just as she was pushing herself off the wall to start walking, her phone buzzed.

- _Can you come to the supermarket? I walked ahead, sorry! I'll make it up with ice-cream! xNagi_

Sighing, she clicked her phone into sleep mode again and turned the corner towards the supermarket. _Honestly,_ she thought, _Nagisa must be the only person that could pull this off with me and not get slapped._ A little voice in her head said that Makoto would have been able to do so too, but she told it to shut up. _Makoto wouldn't forget about me in the first place._

A little further down the road, she could see the local supermarket on her left-hand side, but Nagisa was nowhere in view. Hikaru stopped, still quite a bit away, and squinted in order to confirm her suspicions.

She pulled her phone out of her jacket pocket again and texted Nagisa at top speed.

- _Where are you? Don't tell me you've gone home_

The reply came instantly.

- _I'm at the supermarket! See you there!_

Hikaru sighed at the obvious lie and decided to call him instead. He picked up on the first ring.

"Hello? Nagisa here," he said in a chipper voice that made Hikaru think she should knock him down a peg.

"I know you're not at the supermarket, Nagi," she said, her voice a lot colder than it usually was when she spoke to her friend.

"No, no," he said, "I'm _inside._ You just have to come over to the entrance!"

"Nagisa, I can see Rei waiting there from where I'm standing." She sighed, realising that being mad wasn't going to work with Nagisa. "Nagi, what is going on here?"

"Okay! Okay! I admit it!" He sighed deeply, but didn't sound at all sorry to Hikaru. "Can you just go over to Rei? He has something he wants to ask you, okay? That's why I set this… _thing_ up. So have fun! Bye!"

Before Hikaru could even respond to him, her phone beeped, telling her Nagisa had already hung up. She looked back at the supermarket's entrance. Now that Nagisa had confirmed it, it was really obvious it was Rei standing there. From where she stood, she could even see his bright green backpack.

Hikaru rolled her eyes at the idea of Nagisa setting her up on a blind date. Although she really liked Rei as a friend and saw it as an accomplishment when he'd gotten comfortable enough around her to call her by her first name, she held no romantic feelings for the boy whatsoever. What had Nagisa been thinking?

Taking a deep breath, Hikaru pocketed her phone again and started walking. Rei didn't see her until she was only a few meters away.

"Ah, Hikaru!" Rei greeted her, waving in her direction in an attempt to get her attention. "Nagisa couldn't make it, so he asked me to meet you instead!" He let out a nervous chuckle and Hikaru resisted the urge to facepalm. Could the two of them have been more obvious?

"I eh, shall we go to the beach?" Rei suggested as he passed her a can. "I got you a drink, by the way." Hikaru managed to put on a smile as she thanked him and opened it.

They walked the short distance to the beach in silence, using their drinks as an excuse not to talk. Hikaru only took tiny sips from her can, sometimes sneaking a glance at Rei over the edge of it.

The blue-haired boy seemed nervous to her. Suddenly, Hikaru found herself furiously wishing he would not confess to her. She honestly had no idea what she should tell him if he did. Well, she knew it would be a no, but how could she just blatantly reject her friend like that without hurting his feelings?

Mentally, she cursed Nagisa for not thinking this through. Had he honestly thought she liked Rei back? She thought back to all her interactions with Rei, trying to figure out if she'd ever said or done anything to make anyone think she was in love with Rei. Her eyes grew big. _Was it maybe that time during lunch on the rooftop when I told him I liked him enough for him to call me by my first name? Oh, God, what if they've taken that the wrong way?_

"Hikaru, are you okay?" she heard Rei ask and she looked up, snapping out of her thoughts. She hadn't even realised they'd sat down on a bench. She'd been following him on auto-pilot while she was freaking out on the inside.

"Ah, yes, of course," she answered him. "I'm fine, thank you. Sorry." She turned towards him, her gaze on his backpack, that he'd set down on the tiled ground, next to the bench.

"Good, that's good…" Rei's voice faded away as he averted his gaze and looked at the waves rolling in. Hikaru's panic started rising again as she watched him take in a deep breath.

"Hikaru, I have to ask you something." Rei turned back to her, looking her straight in the eyes, in a way he hadn't done before.

_No. Rei, no,_ Hikaru thought, though she couldn't manage to move her body. _Rei, please, no._

"Hikaru, will you please…"

_No. No, no, no, no, no. Please, Rei, don't ask me to be your girlf-_

Hikaru's thoughts were interrupted by Rei's voice, which was suddenly certain and strong and didn't hold a trace of the nervousness he had been showing a second before.

"Will you please teach me how to interact with girls?"

Hikaru stared at the boy in front of her, her eyes big.

_He isn't interested in me?_ was all she thought. As relief flooded her, she started chuckling.

"Hikaru?" Rei cocked his head slightly, obviously surprised with her reaction.

"I'm sorry!" she managed to squeeze out in between waves of laughter. She gripped her stomach.

A blush forming on his cheeks, Rei sat back, turning away from her again, muttering something to himself. He even pushed his glasses further up his nose so he'd have an excuse to cover his face.

"No, no! Rei!" Hikaru grabbed his shirt and tugged it to make him face her again. "It's not you, Rei, I'm sorry. It's just…" She nearly burst into another fit of laughter when she thought of how she'd convinced herself Rei was in love with her. "Never mind me, okay? I'm sorry."

Somehow, that convinced Rei and after Hikaru managed to calm down he explained his request to her.

Apparently, Rei had had his eye on a girl in their year from the start of the school year, but he had no idea how to approach her. When he'd laid out his problem in front of Nagisa, the smaller boy had suggested he practice on Hikaru.

Hikaru nodded when he finished the story, finally understanding what was really going on. "Of course I'll help you, Rei."

"Really?" His purple eyes grew big, hopeful, and he smiled at her like a little kid that was promised to be taken to McDonalds for a Happy Meal.

Hikaru just smiled back, rolling her eyes again, though this time not in exasperation. "Of course I will, you adorable dork."

* * *

"Whoever this mystery girl of yours is, I'm sure you'll find she'll like you too, if you just talk to her," Hikaru told Rei, nearly two hours later. They were standing on the platform at Iwatobi Station, waiting of Rei's train to arrive and take him to the next stop.

"Are you sure?" Hikaru couldn't believe he was still so doubtful about it all. Even if she knew she wouldn't fall in love with him herself, she sure could understand a girl that would.

After all, besides having a fit body, Rei was humble, a good friend and extremely smart. He showed such passion for everything he tried out.

Makoto had even told Hikaru that the reason Rei and he had almost drowned, was because Rei had been trying to get better at swimming so he wouldn't let the team down. Though even Hikaru could see what a ridiculous idea it had been to go and swim in the ocean at night, she couldn't help but admire him for his determination either.

So when he asked her that question, she was one hundred percent honest when she answered with a nod.

"As long as you don't let Nagi plan your dates, you'll be fine." Hikaru touched his forearm lightly to assure him she believed what she was saying. "I promise."

* * *

"I'm home!" Hikaru called out when she stepped into the hallway and closed the door behind her. She heard Mrs Tachibana greet her from the kitchen, where Hikaru guessed she was busy preparing dinner. Hikaru fussed with her shoelaces for a bit, then went up the stairs to Makoto's room.

She knocked softly, then opened the door. "I'm home!" she said, greeting the two boys inside. "Hi, Haruka."

"Welcome home." Makoto leaned back against his matrass to look at her and Hikaru saw the controller in his hands.

She stepped inside, dropping her schoolbag at the door and climbing onto Makoto's bed. "What are you playing?" There were a bunch of weird fish-with-legs on the screen, talking to one another.

As she laid down on her front, her legs in the air, she pulled on a strand of Haru's hair. "Isn't this Ran's game?" she asked Makoto. Haruka ran a hand over his head to smooth his hair, touching Hikaru's hand in the process. She didn't remove her fingers from his hair though. It was nice and soft.

"Hmm," Makoto confirmed her suspicions. "Haru likes it."

"Really?" Hikaru looked at the dark-haired boy, who had laid his head back on the matrass, looking at her.

"Tobidase Deep Sea Creatures," he told her. "You build a village for deep-sea creatures in the Japan Trench."

Hikaru thought for sure her eyebrows had pulled up behind her hairline. "Interesting," she said, just to say something. "Go on, I'll just watch."

As the boys carried on their game, making their weird legged-fish-characters talk to each other and building houses under water, Hikaru played with Haru's hair, making tiny little plats in the longer strands.

When she couldn't find a strand of hair long enough anymore, she moved on to Makoto's hair, though that was a little hard, since he kept moving along with the movements on the screen.

When dinner came round, she had to explain to Ran and Ren why both boys suddenly had wavy hair.

* * *

**So what did you think of this chapter? Please leave me a review with your thoughts!**

**I totally think this is something Rei would do, with a little encouragement from Nagisa. I just love his character and every time I describe him, I can't help using the words adorable dork, because let's face it, that's what he is.**

**Maybe I'll write a Rei fanfic sometime :) But for now it's just this (and maybe a later) chapter.**

**I'm posting the Q&A soon, so please look forward to that!**

**I recieved some constructive criticism/advice as well and I love that, because it shows how people care about the story, so don't hesitate if you want to send me a PM with serious suggestions or to point out any mistakes! All it can do is make me a better writer and I have no objections to that!**

**As always, a big thank you to all my readers! I can't believe I've already gotten over 3000 views! The chapters are slowly gathering a steady 200+ visitors and more than that in views and it's making me really excited and motivated to write more!**

**A shoutout to everyone who reviewed, or clicked follow or favourite since last chapter:**

**Team-Klaus  
cartoonsAREepic  
IAmTheRedMaskHeWears  
UmiNight Angel Neko  
MachineWash**


	12. Q&A! time

**Feeling Free Q&A**

**Hi everyone! As promised, here are my **_A_**s to your **_Q_**s. Sorry it's not a chapter! I'm working on it, but school is kinda busy at the moment. The one thing I can promise is a chapter by the end of the weekend for sure! Not sure about earlier.**

**Anyway, onto the questions!**

* * *

**Q: Did you read High Speed?**

A: No, I did not, though it is on my list of things to do. I know quite a lot of what happens in High Speed, though, cause Tumblr can never shut up about anything :)

* * *

**Q: Have you heard the character songs?**

A: I have! I must say I really like them and I often have those songs and the OP and ED from the anime on while I'm writing, just to really get into the mood :p I think the songs do fit the characters very well, especially Nagisa's! (Sunny soda breeze? More like sunny shota breeze.)

* * *

**Q: Why do you call Nagisa all different names thoughout your story? Hazuki-kun, Nagisa, Nagi? And why doesn't she call Rei "Ryugazaki-kun" when she doesn't really know him? Same for Haruka? (sorry, it's just that I noticed these things and didn't really get it)**

A: Even though it is written as third-person, the story does follow Hikaru. So the names I use, are according to how she views the character. At first, she doesn't know Nagisa, so after he's introduced himself, she calles him Hazuki-kun. Eventually, they become such close friends, she calls him Nagi for short.  
The reason Rei has been Rei from the start, is that she'd heard Nagisa call him Rei before she knew his last name. So when she asked Haruka whether Rei was in the swim club with him, she didn't know what else to call him.  
Haruka is Haruka from the start. That is because Hikaru is so familiar with Makoto, she picks it up from him. I think Hikaru is less reserved than most anime characters are portrayed (when it comes to names), but she doesn't call him "Haru" like Makoto does, because she really didn't know the first thing about the guy. You might have noticed that the first time she calls him "Haru" is when she runs after him in chap 8.

* * *

**Q: Is the love triangle between Hikaru and Haruka and Makoto going to be the main focus of the story?**

A: No, it will not. In my opinion, Hikaru is a strong character and I think there's more to life than whether or not you can get a boyfriend. I would not want my story to turn out as nothing more than "will she end up with Haruka or Makoto?". There are more themes here:  
**_SPOILERS MAYBE?_**  
* As you know, Hikaru's mother has passed away a short while ago and Hikaru hasn't really dealt with that yet.  
* Hikaru has a dick of a stepfather, who still has legal custody over her… DUN DUN DUN.  
* As I said, Rin is going to show up somewhere in the next few chapters too!  
* I love writing about the friendships in this anime, plus the ones between Hikaru and the boys. So no, Hikaru is not just going to be pining after two guys and being torn in her decision of who to date.

If you want to find out how it ends, you'll just have to keep reading :)

* * *

**Q: Do you write more original stories?**

A: Yes, I do. I write a lot of my own stuff, completely separate from other creative universes (from either books, anime, films etc). I used to post it on Fictionpress, though I've deleted all of it in order to revise them. My poems are still on there, though. I write under the same username there.

* * *

**Q: Is this story going to stick to the way things go in the anime?**

A: Yes, I do try to incorporate as much from the anime as I can and stick to the story in the anime where that is possible. That is why I've been holding off on writing the regionals chapter. I've just watched ep 12 and I am now thinking of how I'm going to mix it with my story!

* * *

**Q: Who is your favourite character from the anime? And your fav pairing?**

A: My favourite character was Makoto at first (for obvious reasons), but I think by now I have to say Rei has stolen his spotlight. My favourite romantic pairing would be Seijuro+Gou. I am so pissed there wasn't another SeiGou moment in ep 12 (SORRY IN CASE THIS WAS A SPOILER FOR YOU!), but I'll just have to wait for season 2 to see if anything's going to happen there. My favourite friendship is the one between Makoto and Haru 3

* * *

**Q: What's the reason you haven't included Rin so far?**

A: The main reason is that Rin isn't really a part of the boys' daily lives. As in, they don't see them daily. So Hikaru doesn't interact with him either. Sure, she's heard his name once or twice, but that's it.

* * *

**Q: Where is Hikaru's dad? We know her mother is dead and her stepfather awol, but you haven't said a word about her dad.**

A: Hikaru's dad is dead as a doornail. I know it's a little cliché to have Hikaru be an orphan, but sadly, it happens all too often. I'm not sure what the statistics are in Japan, but I'm thinking that the backstory Hikaru has isn't that unusual. Hikaru's backstory sheds some more light on who her father was too, so that's for a later chapter ;)

* * *

**Q: I absolutely love your character Miyo with her cute bunny ears! Do you have backstories for all your OCs? Can you tell me how she got into wearing that hat? Thanks!**

A: I'm really glad you like Miyo! I don't have the backstories for each of my OCs written out, but for the more prominent ones I do. The less important basketball girls only have a backstory as far as it concerns basketball and the team.  
As for Miyo and her bunny ears hat:  
Miyo is not the tallest of girls; she's only 1.67 meters tall, which I guess is a regular height for a Japanese girl, but very small for a basketball player. Even Hikaru, with her 1,73 m is considered on the short side in the basketball world. But Miyo's strength is that she can make ridiculously high jumps for a girl her size; she can even dunk a ball!  
Miyo's always had this talent and she's always had a problem with sitting still. Even as a kid, she jumped around everywhere, which is why her grandmother gave her a beanie with bunny-ears attached to it, though it was way too big for her back then, so her mother took in the fabric.  
Now that Miyo's a little older, she can wear the beanie without problem and she still does this 1. to honor her grandmother, who has since passed away, and 2. because she's become so used to it, it has become a part of her and her personality. Miyo without the bunny ears just isn't Miyo.

* * *

**Q: Can you give us some Hikaru trivia? She's so cute and I'd like to know more details about her!**

A: Sure! Here I go, a little character trivia sheet!  
_(Also includes the other questions I got from you guys!)_

Name: Tsukino Hikaru  
Gender: Female  
Family: Tsukino Suzuna (mother, deceased)  
Tsukino Tomoya (father, deceased)  
Luca di Chami (stepfather)  
Age: 16 (25th June)  
Zodiac Sign: Gemini  
Eye colour: Dark purple  
Hair colour: Light blue  
Complexion: Light, tans a little in summer  
Clothing  
(not in school): Jeans or other trousers, tank top/t-shirt, hoodie/jumper/vest. Sometimes a dress.  
Religion: Not particularly religious, follows some of the Shinto practices  
Hobbies: Basketball, hanging out with friends, video games, reading (English YA books)  
Fave dish: Shabu-shabu  
Fave snack: Chocolate Taiyaki  
Fave drink: Iced Tea  
Fave music: Pretty much everything on the radio, not a strong preference for a certain stream  
Fave anime: Shingeki no Kyojin and Kuroko no Basuke (for obvious reasons)


	13. Chapter 12

**So here it is, chapter twelve. It's taken me a while, but like I promised, I am posting it before the end of the weekend. It's a bit sad, and very Hikaru-orientated, but I hope you enjoy it anyway!**

* * *

**CHAPTER 12: This is finally a home!**

* * *

Over the past weeks, Hikaru had become used to her new living arrangements, even started feeling home in this house.

The only thing she wished she didn't have to see, the only eyesore in her room, was the cardboard moving box that was sitting under her desk. From where she was sitting on the bed, clad in her pyjamas and ready to go to sleep, she could see her mother's name on the label.

So far, Hikaru hadn't opened it. She'd shoved it into that corner under the desk on her first day in the Tachibana house and hadn't dared to touch it since.

It was dark outside and Hikaru knew that Makoto and Haru, who was staying over once more, had gone into Makoto's room by now. Ran and Ren had been put to bed over two hours ago. The house was quiet.

She touched her toes to the carpeted floor, carefully, still unsure whether this was the right decision. When the ground didn't rise up to swallow her, she moved off the bed, until she sat on her knees, in front of the box.

She hardly noticed the moment she pulled it from under the desk and in front of her. Her fingers traced the tape that had closed the box shut. It was smooth and cold and an ugly shade of brown.

Letting out her breath, Hikaru got up on her feet, pushed the box closer to the bed and grabbed her scissors to cut the tape open. After throwing the sticky plastic away, she sat down on her bed, one of her feet on either side of the box. As she grabbed both flaps to open it, she leaned forward.

_What did you pack for me on that day, Mother?_ She thought back to that day, which turned out to be three days before Tsukino Suzuna passed away. She thought of how her mother, who had been bedridden for weeks, weak and in pain and struggling for breath, had suddenly decided she wanted to go through her things and pick out what to give to her daughter.

Hikaru had told her mother not to get out of bed, that she should just rest and that Hikaru would go through all the belongings herself. But Suzuna, from whom Hikaru had inherited her hard-headedness, had ordered her daughter to go out and have a day that didn't involve taking care of her terminal mother.

So on that day, Hikaru had picked up the phone and called her stepfather and screamed and shouted at the voicemail until her throat was raw and her eyes had run dry.

A tiny dark spot soaked into the cardboard, then another and another. Stuck between the memories and the hypnotising patter of tears falling to their end, Hikaru didn't do a thing to stop herself from finally crying.

It wasn't until her breath came out as a strangled wheeze, that she let go of the flaps and covered her face with her hands. She had to struggle for breath in between the sobs that came faster and faster now, and louder too.

Someone said something at the doorway, but Hikaru didn't pay attention to it. In her mind, images of those last months with her mother piled up: her mother's reassuring smile while she was put on dialysis because the cancer had metastasized, the hugs she had given Hikaru when she was sent home after the doctors had announced to seize treatment and switch to pain management, the evenings they'd spent in bed together, sharing stories and watching television. Then the times Hikaru found her mother too ill to move to the toilet, the times Suzuna had been in too much pain for her standard dose of morphine to handle, the times Hikaru had cried herself to sleep and the times she'd stayed up crying all night.

There was the horrible days in between Suzuna's death and her cremation, where Hikaru was the one who had to take care of all the insurance, the planning of the funeral and had to figure out what she was going to do next. If it hadn't been for Mrs Tachibana showing up and helping out, Hikaru wouldn't have gotten through it.

A hand touched Hikaru's shoulder and slid down her arm, until the girl was completely enveloped in warmth, pulled into his lap and cradled like a small child. She tried to turn to look at her best friend, but his chin on her head prevented her from doing so.

"It's okay," Makoto said, his own voice a little wobbly too. He tightened his grip on her. "It's okay, Karu-chan, it's okay to cry."

He was exactly what she needed; the sound of his voice and the feel of his arms around her were exactly what she needed in that moment, to finally let out what she'd been keeping in for weeks.

* * *

"Mum packed it for me," Hikaru explained, gesturing that she meant the box. Makoto was sitting next to her now, still watching her with every word she said.

Hikaru wasn't sure how long she'd spent crying and how long after that she'd just sat there, hugging her best friend, before she'd realised she still hadn't done what she'd set out to do: opening the box her mother had left her.

"You haven't looked at it yet?" Makoto asked her, leaning forward to look at it better. Hikaru shook her head, a little guilty. She knew she should have done it earlier. "Do you want me to stay?"

Hikaru looked up at him. As always, the look in his green eyes was soft, caring and it calmed her down. _As always,_ Hikaru thought, _he is exactly where I need him to be._

"Please," Hikaru responded, then she looked down again, hooking her fingers under the flaps once more. "Here goes…"

The box wasn't even filled halfway. When Hikaru looked at the contents, she realised they could have fit in a shoebox too. On top of the pile, jumbled from the move and being shoved around, was an envelope of thick crème coloured paper Hikaru recognised as her mother's stationary. Her name was written on it in neat, precise strokes. Suzuna had never really had motherly handwriting.

Hikaru put the envelope on the bed next to her and picked up the next item, laying everything in the box out on her sheets. In the end, there was an odd collection on things on the bed.

A thick photo album, the envelope, a tiny phone charm, a white hat that looked official, a coin that was bent out of shape and two silver rings.

"I don't know where to start," Hikaru confessed, as Makoto picked up the smaller of the two rings and looked at it closely.

"Do you think this was your mother's wedding band?" he asked her, picking up the bigger one and comparing the two. Hikaru shook her head.

"She threw out her wedding ring when she realised Luca wasn't coming back." Hikaru could clearly remember that day. Her mother, physically still quite fit at that point, had locked herself in her room and hadn't come out until Hikaru told her she'd gotten dinner for them.

"No, I mean, from your parents' wedding?" He extended his hand, showing her the bigger ring. "I think this might have been your father's."

Her hand trembling slightly, Hikaru took the ring from him. It was a very simple one, plain silver, nothing on it. The inside had a something engraved in it, but the ring hadn't been cleaned recently and it wasn't readable.

"Can I see the other one?" Hikaru asked, holding her hand out without looking at Makoto. She felt him put it in her palm. The smaller ring was a little less plain. On about a third of the band, the bit that showed on the outside of your hand, little silver wires came out of the solid silver and waved into an intricate pattern, only to go back to solid on the other side.

This ring was cleaner than the other and the engraving on the inside was easy to read.

"It's got two dates on it," Hikaru said, "nineteen and eighteen years ago." She turned to look at Makoto. "It's possible…"

She looked back at the other items on the bed. Even though she knew, practically thinking, that she should start with the envelope, she couldn't bring herself to do it. She was afraid there might be a letter in there and she knew for sure, if she read the words her mother had written down for her, she wouldn't be able to go through the other things anymore.

She put both rings down, next to the hat, and picked up the photo album. When Makoto scooched closer, she realised how curious he must have been too. She kicked the now empty box out of the way and pulled her legs under her, making place for Makoto to sit closer to her and look at the pictures with her.

Hikaru ran her fingers over the leather binding that had gone soft. She wondered how often her mother had looked at this album she herself had never seen before.

She looked up at Makoto, needing for him to tell her it was okay, needing him to encourage her. He didn't let her down.

The first few pages contained photos of Suzuna as a young woman. The scribbles on the side of them told Hikaru they were from when she was in college. Suzuna in her dorm, Suzuna at a local festival.

"That's my mother," Makoto pointed out, touching his finger to the other girl in the photo. Sure enough, the hair that was pulled back into a braid, decorated with flowers, had the dark, olive-green tint that Mrs Tachibana and Ran both had.

Hikaru had her fingers on the bottom left corner of the left page, ready to turn it over, when something caught her eye. She looked a little closer and then let out a chuckle. "And there's your dad!" A young man wearing glasses was shown in the middle of tying a wish to the bamboo tree in the background, but his eyes were on the two girls in yukatas.

"It's weird to see them so young," Makoto said, a smile on his face. "I mean, you _know_ you're parents were young once, but it's hard to picture them at that age."

After turning the page again, the pictures started changing. There was a man next to Suzuna now, dressed in the white uniform of the Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force. Hikaru's turned her head so fast she felt something pull in her neck.

Rubbing the muscle absentmindedly, she looked at the white hat on the bed. Leaving the album lying open on her desk, she picked it up, running her hands along the black bill.

"It's my dad's," she whispered. When she looked back at Makoto, she frowned. "Mum never really told me about him. I didn't even know he was in the JMSDF." Then she smiled and put the hat on Makoto's head. It sagged a little to the side. "I've never had anything of my dad's."

Makoto sat up straight, adjusted the hat and saluted her. "Sailor Tachibana, at your service!" Hikaru giggled and touched her hand to the badge that connected to both the bill and the crown of the hat.

"I believe the term is Seaman." She tapped the badge. "At least, this says Leading Seaman."

After going through the photo album some more, Hikaru put it away. It was hard for her to see the pictures of her parents, so happy together, now that they had both passed away.

Suzuna hadn't been big on talking about Hikaru's father, but this was what Hikaru did know: Suzuna and Tomoya had fallen in love fast, had a baby, and then Tomoya had died. How he had come to pass, she didn't know. Hikaru had only been a few weeks old when it happened.

The coin turned out to be a souvenir from the zoo, where Hikaru and her mother used to go often when she was still a little kid. It had been pressed into an oval with a picture of an elephant on it.

While Hikaru was checking out the coin, Makoto had been looking at the phone charm; a small glass case that had something white in it. As soon as Hikaru put the coin down, he showed it to Hikaru.

"It's got a grain of rice in it," he said to her. "And your name's written on that grain. The water and glass serve as a magnifying glass somehow." Hikaru nodded. She remembered when her mother had come home with it. There had been a man making those things at the mall and Suzuna had gotten it just because she thought it was cute. Hikaru didn't realise Suzuna had taken it off her own mobile phone. Then again, Suzuna hadn't been using her phone during those last three days.

When Hikaru laid the phone charm back in its place, there was only one thing left. Makoto must have realised how personal a letter must be and offered to leave the room.

Hikaru stared at the content of the envelope and called out Makoto's name before he could close her door behind him.

"Hmm?" Makoto stuck his head into the room again, wondering what was going on.

"Come and look at this," Hikaru said, still not taking her eyes off the photo she was holding in her hands. She felt the bed dip where Makoto sat down to look over her shoulder.

In the picture, Suzuna was sitting up in a hospital bed, Mrs Tachibana sitting next to her. Their husbands were on their sides, leaning in to be in the frame and both women were holding their babies. Little Makoto didn't pay any attention to the camera. Instead, he was looking at the new-born baby girl that was sleeping peacefully in her mother's arms, their tiny hands clasped together.

Hikaru flipped the picture over. On the back, Suzuna had written two Kanji.

家族, or kazoku. Family.

* * *

Hikaru fished the empty photo frame she'd bought at the mall last Saturday out of her desk. Smiling at the picture, she made quick work of putting it into the frame.

After gaping at the photo together for a while, Makoto had given her another hug. "Your mother had the right thought when she wrote that down," he had said, smiling at her.

"Thanks," Hikaru had answered. "Not just for this. For everything. I'm glad you came in when you did. It's a good thing you head me."

"No." Makoto had shaken his head at that point. "I didn't hear you. Haru did. He even asked you if you were okay, but you didn't answer." Hikaru's eyes grew big at the thought of Haruka watching her as she cried her eyes out. "He didn't really know what to do so he got me instead."

"Really?"

"Really."

Hikaru shook her head, closing the back of the photo frame to keep the picture in place. _I'll have to thank Haru for that tomorrow._

The items from the box had all been given a place in her room. The hat sat on her bookcase, the photo album between the other books. The phone charm was on her mobile phone, the coin in a little plastic bag, tacked to the bulletin board. Hikaru had put the wedding bands on a spare necklace she had, and had hung it on a tack on the bulletin board.

Now Hikaru placed the photo on her desk, facing her bed, so she could see it from there. She moved her sheets and got into bed. As she put her finger on the light switch of her bedside lamp, she looked at the picture again and thought, _now this really feels like home._

* * *

**Thank you so much for coming back to read this chapter! I can't believe my story already has over 4000 views! That's amazing!**

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	14. Chapter 13

**READ THIS FIRST!**

**Apparently, not every got a story alert for the last chapter. SO IF YOU HAVEN'T READ CHAPTER 12 YET, GO READ THAT BEFORE THIS ONE! :)**

* * *

**A/N: **It's taken me quite some time to write this chapter, because school has been really busy. I just wanted to let all of you know that it's probably going to be like that for a while, so please be patient with me.

Also: I (badly) drew the photo from chap 12. Link is on my profile in case you're curious.

* * *

**CHAPTER 13: Regionals are here!**

* * *

Hikaru wiped the sweat off her brow, while she bounced the ball with her other hand.

Her eyes scanned the field, trying to find who was standing free, or who could break free of the opposing team's defence. Minako was being blocked by two of the black-shirted girls, who were doing a pretty good job of making sure she wouldn't escape them.

Hitomi had started playing more forward than midfield, as soon as she had had to switch Crystal out for Hikaru. In the third quarter of the game, Crystal had landed on her ankle in a nasty way, making it impossible for her to go on. Kyoko, who played the same position as Hikaru, namely mid/forward, had been switched out for Sada, to support Tomoe's defense.

In the corner of her eye, Hikaru spotted Hitomi's distinct combination of brown hair and a red sweatband and she passed the ball quickly, before the rival's midfielder could steal the ball away from her.

Hitomi was completely free when she passed the ball and Hikaru stepped to her right to screen the midfielder that tried to run past her and on to Hitomi. The girl had a little trouble with coming to such a sudden stop, but she managed not to bowl Hikaru over.

A quick glance at the clock told Hikaru they only had ten seconds left. Enough for the opposing team to launch a counterattack. With the score being 74 – 73 for the opposing team, that could form a problem.

Before the two girls by Minako's side figured out they were defending the wrong target, Hitomi jumped up and shot a three-pointer. The ball sailed over almost half the field, while Hikaru fell back to the back of the midfield. If Hitomi's ball went in, they would lead by two points. The counterattack could not be allowed to be successful.

To Hikaru, it was almost as though she was replaying a video in slow motion as she watched Hikaru's ball touch the rim of the basket. Making only half a circle on it, it dropped off on the left, _outside_ the basket.

_Shit,_ Hikaru immediately though, getting ready to step forward again, in her head planning out how she could regain possession quickly. But just as her right foot touched the floor in her first step, Minako rebounded, grabbing the ball before the opposing defence could catch it below the basket, and dunked the ball, landing with a loud slap of her feet.

"Go, go, Minako!" their teammates on the bench started chanting, jumping up and down in enthusiasm. Hikaru flashed Minako a quick smile when the girl fell back into defensive mode too, but then she focussed on the black shirts again. Because Minako's dunk was only two points, in contrast to the three points Hitomi's ball would have been, they were just one point ahead of the other team. A difference that was easily overcome by one successful shot.

The ball changed possession, the girl with a long black ponytail stood behind the back line, looking for a teammate to pass to. Right when the clock beeped off the tenth second mark, Hikaru made her decision.

She stepped away from her target, making sure it looked like mistake, a misstep, and she saw the recognition of a chance appear in ponytail-girl's eyes.

As the chest-pass flew where Hikaru knew it would, she turned back, spinning past the girl getting ready to receive the pass, and caught the ball to her own side. Using the foot furthest from her opponent as her pivot foot, she turned around further, passing the ball back to Tomoe, who was completely free since the opposing offence hadn't reached them yet.

The next pass went to Sada, then to Hitomi, who carried the ball away from the opponents trying to move the game into Iwatobi's half. Hikaru left her confused target behind, quickly zigzagging a way through the opposing defence, Minako on the same line, though more to the left field.

The two girls clad in light blue turned back to their team's captain, just in time to see her jump up and go for another three-pointer.

Hikaru moved in for a possible rebound, staying just outside the bucket under the basket. Minako had two defending players on her again, but this time Hikaru knew they wouldn't need Minako's assistance anyway.

While the ball followed a perfect arc towards the basket, the clock had counted down to one. Just as the number changed to zero and the buzzer went off, the ball sailed through the net.

Loud cheers filled the air and Hikaru's teammates rushed onto the field, finding Hitomi and engaging in a giant group hug. Hikaru felt a hand on her shoulder as she jogged towards them too and looked up to see a grinning Minako keeping pace next to her.

"Good game, Hikaru-kun!" the tall, dark-skinned third-year told her. Hikaru smiled back broadly. "Thanks, Minako-senpai!"

Reaching the group, both girls were immediately engulfed in hugs as Iwatobi Girls' Basketball Club celebrated their first win in the regional championships tournament.

* * *

"Are you going to make it on time?" Sakura's voice rang out over the shower stall's wall. Hikaru moved her hands through her hair, washing out the last of the conditioner.

"Yeah, I should!" she called back, turning circles under the shower head to warm herself up all the way, then turning the tap off. She reached for her towel and started drying her hair. "Makoto's dad is picking me up in a minute. We should be able there on time. If we're lucky, we'll have time to meet up with Kou and Ama-sensei."

Leaving her hair half-wet, she as much of it as she could into a ponytail and got dressed quickly. She glanced at the watch she'd put in her bag that morning. Quarter past ten. It was a two-hour drive to the pool where the swimming regionals were being held, _but_, Hikaru thought, _if Mr Tachibana steps on the gas, we'll make it in time_.

Hikaru had gotten extremely lucky that they'd gotten the nine o'clock slot in their tournament and didn't have to play another match that day. The other two schools they would have to play – if they kept advancing – were planned on the Sunday.

"Hitomi-senpai!" she called out, hastily gathering all her things once she'd put her shoes on. "I'm leaving! See you all tomorrow!"

"Don't be late!" was the only reply she got, though she barely heard as she raced down the hallway.

* * *

"Why aren't we moving?" Hikaru asked, annoyed at the sight of a long line of cars in front of them. Mr Tachibana, sitting next to her, shrugged apologetically.

"I don't know, Hikaru, I think it might have to do with the regionals. It must be a lot busier than it would normally be." The car in front of them moved a bit and Mr Tachibana let go of the brake to close the small distance again."

From where they were, Hikaru could see the giant building that housed the pool, just up the hill to their right. She looked at the clock again.

"We only have five minutes left! We're never going to make it in time to see them!" She'd been as patient as she could be all throughout the drive there, but now she was fidgeting in her seat. "Can't we go around somewhere?"

"I don't think so," the answer sounded, as the car put another few meters behind it. "There have been signs ever since we entered the city and they clearly say we have to go this way."

Hikaru crossed, then uncrossed her arms while she looked out at the other stationary cars. When she saw a mother guiding her child thought the narrow open spaces between the cars to cross the road, she got an idea.

"Mr Tachibana, do you mind if I go? I think I might be able to get there in time if I run!"

"And get out of the car now? I'm driving."

"Yes, but you're not driving _very much_, so I thought…" Before she could finish her sentence, Mr Tachibana was already gesturing for her to go. Without waiting for him to change his mind, she got out of the car and made her way to the pavement.

* * *

Halfway up the hill, Hikaru felt her legs complain about the pace she was setting. She was tired from the game that morning and her muscles ached from being cramped up in the car immediately after that.

Though her legs were burning, she pushed on. It was twelve past twelve when she paid her ticket and made her way through the entrance. Just before she was able to decide where she had to go, a figure clad in light clothing sprinted past her.

It took her a second to process who that person was, but then she was on his heels.

"Rei!" The boy hardly slowed down when he heard his name being called. "Rei! What are you doing here? Where are the others?"

"They're swimming in a minute, we have to hurry," he responded, though it didn't answer her first question. She followed him up several flights of stairs, struggling to keep up with him. For one, Hikaru was used to running short distances at a time and on top of that, Rei was a good track athlete first and a swimmer second.

They burst into the stadium a little later and Hikaru looked at the swimming pool just in time to see Makoto push off of the wall for his part of the relay.

With Rei by her side, she watched him leave several of the other swimmers behind, before she realised there was a problem with the blue-haired boy standing there.

"Rei, what are you doing here? Why aren't you down there? Are you hurt?" She looked him over quickly while she asked it, but he didn't seem to favour one leg and he didn't have any visible injury to any other body part either.

The boy just pushed his glasses up and shook his head. "Rin-san is swimming with them. He needs it more than I do. I want the team to be happy." He looked away from her, then gave her shoulder a gentle push as he pointed to her left. "Gou-san, Ama-sensei and coach Sasabe are over there, let's go join them."

Hikaru had another million questions running through her head, mostly getting stuck at "W_ho is this Rin again? I've heard the name before."_ but she didn't have the time to ask them as they walked down the steps to the railing separating this floor of the stadium from the lower floor.

She stopped to watch when Makoto tapped the wall and Nagisa dove in. She joined in with the chanting when it floated over from where the others were sitting. "Go, go, Nagisa!"

"They're in third place, ahead of the top schools," she head coach Sasabe say and she looked up at the score board to see which schools were in which lane.

"Amazing!" That was Ama-sensei. Gou said it was a personal best. And then, looking at the next boy getting ready at the starting block, coach Sasabe said:

"Rei is up next."

Hikaru looked over, already knowing it wouldn't be Rei, since he was standing next to her.

Nagisa called out his name as the boy called Rin kicked off the starting block. Hikaru leaned over the railing some more, watching as his start changed into a smooth butterfly stroke. She only caught half of the conversation going on.

"… they went too far."

"His entry angle was five degrees off, but I suppose it will do," Rei said, revealing their presence to the others. They immediately demanded to hear why Rei was there, but he said he'd explain later.

With a little push from Rei, they started chanting again, supporting the team as much as they could. Hikaru cried her lungs out for this boy she didn't even know.

"It's Haru's turn now!" she said to Rei, not able to keep a smile off her face. She was pumped up from the run there and the whole atmosphere in the stadium riled her up some more.

Haruka jumped off the block at the same moment the tips of Rin's fingers touched the wall. Even Hikaru, who was by far not as knowledgeable in swimming as Rei was, could see that his entry was perfect, with the way he stayed close to the surface, but deep enough to make full use of his starting speed.

And then he glided through the water as though it didn't cost an ounce of effort. Hikaru couldn't keep her eyes off of him.

"Is it the first time you've seen him swim?" Rei asked her when she fell quiet, no longer shouting Haru's name. Hikaru nodded, her words taken from her. Unlike her, Rei seemed to have really found his voice as he and the others yelled at the top of their lungs.

Cheers rose up in the stadium as a bright red one appeared on the score board, right in front of their swim club's name. Hikaru, still stunned, just watched as Haru was pulled out of the water by Makoto and then immediately enveloped in hugs from the whole team.

"You guys are truly beautiful." She turned to see Rei staring at the boys down by the pool too. She suddenly gave in to the urge to hug him, linking her arm though his and leaning her head on his shoulder.

Rei startled at the sudden contact. "Hikaru?"

She looked up and made eye-contact with him, smiling at the embarrassed blush now flushing his cheeks. "I don't know what's going on exactly, Rei," she said, looking back at the four laughing boys, "but thank you for making it happen."

He shook his head vehemently at the idea of Hikaru thanking him and used his left hand to push his glasses up some more. "No, no, it's nothing."

Hikaru let him go, thinking he might die of embarrassment if she held on another second, and leaned on the railing once more, watching as Makoto, Haruka, Nagisa and Rin walked away from the pool and to where she assumed the showers were. Suddenly, something dawned on her.

"Rei?" She stood up straight and turned around to face not just his questioning look, but Gou, Ama-sensei, Chigsua and coach Sasabe's too. "Won't they be disqualified?"

* * *

**As always a big thank you for reading! Over 5000 views already! My god.**

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	15. Chapter 14

**A/N:** There are some updates on my profile regarding this story! **KizunaCho** drew some awesome chibi's for this story **(thank you, thank you, thank you!)**, you should go check them out! I also linked to a picture I drew of Hikaru in her basketball uniform.

* * *

**CHAPTER 14: Studying more than homework! part one**

* * *

Something was itching her cheek. A little sleepy, Hikaru opened one of her eyes to see who had come into her room.

"You're awake!" Ran jumped up when Ren suddenly shouted. "I thought you were sleeping."

Hikaru stretched out and sat up straight. It was no wonder the twins had mistaken her for someone in dreamland, with the way she had been sprawled over her desk. Anything not the have to see her notes from History class.

"No, just… trying to study." When Ran chuckled, she added: "I said _trying_ not _succeeding_." She turned in her desk chair, picking Ren up and pulling the boy onto her lap. He rested his hands on top of hers as she hugged him close. "So what did you guys want?"

"Can you play a game with us?" Ran asked. She stepped closer, pushing Ren's legs. "I wanna sit with Hika-chan too, Ren!" Hikaru shifted the boy so he sat on only one of her legs, so Ran could sit on the other.

"Can you?" Ren repeated, leaning back a bit so he could look at her face. "Makoto is off again so we have no one else to play with."

Hikaru sighed. It was the fourth night in a row that Makoto was out, meeting up with Rin together with the other boys. For some reason, that Rin was really starting to get on Hikaru's nerves. Though Makoto had explained the whole situation and everything that had been going on to her on Saturday evening, Hikaru still didn't understand why they had to spend every minute with them now. She hadn't even heard his name before the relay!

She let out another sigh and patted the two kids on the back, making them get off her lap. "Well, I might as well play a game with the two of you," she said, getting up herself and letting them pull her hands. _That history test is going to be a disaster anyway._

* * *

"Nagi, it's Hikaru."

"Ah! Hi-chan! What is it?"

Hikaru sat back against the pillows on her bed, pulling her duvet to cover her all the way up to her shoulders.

"Is that Hikaru?" someone said in the background. Nagisa immediately started saying hi to her for Rei and Makoto and he included Haru without a word from the boy himself.

"Nagi, I was wondering if you had some time to spare tomorrow after school? Or in the weekend."

"Sure, what do you need?" She heard some rustle in the background and then: "Just a second, the train's coming in." The sound was muffled and Hikaru imagined the four of them getting on the train, Nagisa's hand covering the receiver. She checked her alarm clock. _It's nine and they're only just leaving Samezuka?_ "I'm here again."

"I was wondering if maybe you could help me study for history? I am so going to fail the test next Tuesday."

"Study? I can't tomorrow, because it's my sister's birthday and I promised to be home. But I can do Saturday."

"Please, thank you. I'll see you tomorrow at school, okay?"

"Sure. See you." Hikaru stared at her phone when Nagisa hung up immediately. Normally it would take at least five minutes for them to end the conversation. _He must be too busy._

Frustrated, she slapped her phone down on her nightstand and slid down her bed until she was completely covered by her duvet. _At least tomorrow it'll just be the five of us._

* * *

"And when Rin-chan stood up too quickly and hit his head on the bunk bed!" Nagisa held his stomach while he laughed, thinking of the day before, when they'd gone to visit Rin in his dorm room.

"Nagisa, you shouldn't joke about that."

Hikaru leaned back against the wall the bench was connected too, watching Rei and Nagisa squabble about whether or not they were allowed to laugh at another person's pain. She munched on her onigiri in silence.

Lunch break was their third break of the day and every time she'd spoken to any of the boys, it'd been _Rin_ this and _Rin-chan_ that. She was getting sick of it. She got up.

"Ah, Hikaru?" Makoto tugged her sleeve slightly to grab her attention, but she pulled it out of his grasp.

"I'm going to the library," she said, curtly, and without glancing back, she left for the second floor. She was in a foul mood and she knew it, but she didn't really care. If they wanted to talk about how awesome and fun Rin was, they could do it without her.

To her relief, Yanagi-san was the student librarian on duty that day.

"Tsukino-san, long time no see," he said, laying down the book he had been engrossed in himself. "How have you been?"

"I'm…" She started to say fine, but then changed her mind. She sat down on the stool next to Yanagi-san and turned to him. "I'm not sure," she answered honestly. Then she put on her smile. "But I'll be okay. Basketball's been keeping me away from the books."

Yanagi-san nodded. "I heard about your regionals. Too bad."

"Yeah." Hikaru shrugged at the memory and looked at her taped up fingers, that had gotten hurt during the tournament. Even though they'd tried their hardest, they'd been beaten in their second game on Sunday, leaving them in third place in the tournament.

"Anyway, I think I have something to cheer you up." She watched him as he got up and rifled through a box on the table behind him. "We got… ah here it is." He turned around with a stack of books in his hands. He sat them down in front of her and she looked at the titles. All English YA books.

"When did these come in?" Hikaru asked, rifling through the stack. "Suzanne Collins, Maggie Stiefvater… oh, look, John Green!" She held the book up to Yanagi-san and grinned broadly.

"We got them yesterday," he explained to her. "Ike-sensei thought we could use some more books for English, but he wanted people to actually _like_ the books, so we went for Young Adult books." He picked up one of the books and showed it to her. "This is one of my favourite series, I've got them all at home. You should try it sometime." He adjusted his blue tie and added: "But first, you should get to class."

And sure enough, as soon as he said it, the bell rang.

* * *

As soon as the bell rang, Hikaru sped towards the front door. Nagisa had postponed their study time to after dinner and now Hikaru was really looking forward to spending some time with her friend, just them.

"Nagi! Come on…" she said when she pulled the door open, but she stopped when she saw the other boy standing next to her. "Rei? What are you doing here?"

"Makoto didn't tell you?" Nagisa asked. Hikaru frowned. Had Makoto said anything about Rei coming over?

"Tell me what?"

"That we're going over to Haru's," Makoto's voice sounded behind her. She stepped to the side and turned around a little. Makoto had his backpack slung over his shoulder and hers in his hand. "We can sleep over there, but if you don't want to, I'll walk you back for the night."

"We're all going over?"

"Yes, I've already grabbed your books and your pajamas."

Hikaru blushed at the idea of Makoto going through her wardrobe and even more when she realised her stack of PJs was right next to her bras. "You already…"

Suddenly, Makoto's cheeks flushed too and he held her schoolbag out to her. "Sorry."

Nagisa's voice was what snapped her out of her stare. "Come on!" he shouted, already through the gate and on his way down the steps to the street. "We can't keep Haru-chan waiting!"

"We should go," she said, grabbing her shoes and quickly putting them on. "We're leaving!" she shouted out towards the kitchen, sure that Makoto had told his mother of their plans for the night.

* * *

"Ugh, I don't get it!" Hikaru threw her hands up and looked away from her notes. Next to her, Nagisa sighed. They were sitting at Haru's living room table, a blanket over their legs and feet to keep warm. Haru hadn't brought out the kotatsu, since it wasn't winter yet, so this was Hikaru's solution.

"It's just remembering the dates," Nagisa said, "it's like vocabulary, learning by heart." He sounded almost desparate at that point. They'd been going at it for over an hour, but it still wasn't of any help to Hikaru.

"It's impossible!" she exclaimed, giving up and lying down over the table again, scattering her notes.

"Ah, Hi-chan!" Nagisa leaned in closer. "Cheer up!" Something poked her lips and Hikaru sat up to see it had been a pocki stick. She took it from Nagisa's hand.

"Don't feed me, last time you tried to feed someone you ended up nearly killing Makoto." She bit the tip off the stick and grabbed the box from the table. "Learn to just do this." She held the box out to Nagisa, who – even though he pouted at first – took one of the chocolate-coated biscuits from it.

"That's no fun," he uttered, nibbling on the snack and looking at the other boys, who were sitting at the kitchen table. "Mako-chan! Hi-chan is being a buzz-kill!"

"Nagisa tried to feed me!" Hikaru exclaimed.

"Hey, hey, calm down." Makoto came over and looked at the two of them, sitting next to each other. "How about we switch partners for a bit?" He gave them his typical cocked-head-smile and they had no option but to give in to him.

"Does anyone need help with either English or Home Ec?" Hikaru called out, bored by the way things turned out. Now that she was sure she would flunk her History test, she didn't really care about the studying anymore.

"Haru and I could probably both use some help with English," Makoto said, smiling at his friend, who just nodded. As usual, Makoto was right when it came to Haruka. "Nagisa, Rei, do you have something to work on?"

The blond nodded and pulled a chair closer to Rei. "Rei-chan is really good at Math, aren't you Rei-chan?"

It took a bit of shuffling, but eventually Hikaru ended up at the living room table, sandwiched between Haru and Makoto, who were both leaning close to see what Hikaru was going to point out in their textbook. Just when she was about to ask what their biggest problem was – reading, grammar, or something else – Haru's bell rang and Nagisa sprinted towards the door.

_Were we expecting anyone else?_ Hikaru thought, confused. She leaned back, resting her weight on one of her hands on the floor and watched as a head of maroon hair came around the corner and into the living room.

She knew that colour, though she was used to seeing it on a different person – a person she liked a whole lot better. While Makoto got up to greet the boy, Hikaru tried to keep the annoyance from her face, not succeeding at doing so in the slightest.

"Welcome in the house," Makoto said, acting as if it was his house and he was supposed to play the host, "Rin!"

* * *

**Thank you all for reading again, the second half of "Studying more than homework" should be coming up somewhere this weekend. Sorry, I realise this chapter is all over the place.**

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	16. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15: Studying more than homework! Part two**

* * *

With her eyes tightened, Hikaru followed Matsuoka Rin's movements like a hawk, as he dropped a bag near the TV and sat down across from her, cross-legged, all with a bored expression on his face. He didn't seem to notice her until he turned his head to face Haru. He raised an eyebrow at first, but then he seemed to recognise her.

"You must be Hikar-"

"_Tsukino_ Hikaru," she interrupted him, picking up Haru's textbook again. "And we're busy, so I suggest you get started too." She elbowed Haru's side softly to make him pay attention again. Then she called Makoto, his name coming out a little harsher than she had meant it to.

"Yes!" He immediately sat down on her other side, though he didn't lean in again. "Ahem, shouldn't we figure out who's pairing up with Rin first?" Hikaru shrugged, not lifting her eyes from the paper. "What are your strengths, Rin? And what do you need help with?"

Hikaru counted the seconds until he answered. When she came to five, he spoke, though he sounded annoyed. "I have a problem with Literature, but I'm good at English. Haru, I'll help you with that, alright? I'm guessing you're still no good at it." He had the gall to smirk when he said that.

Next to her, Haru shifted. Hikaru's hand shot out to grab his sleeve before he could get up completely. She dropped the textbook on the table and for the first time, she looked Rin in the eyes. "_I'm _already helping Haru and Makoto with their English. Figure something else out."

In response, Rin's eyes narrowed and his mouth moved into a scowl. "What-"

"Hey, hey, how about we do something else?" Makoto intervened, extending his open palms in between them, as though they'd been on the verge of actually, physically, attacking each other. "Rin, my Literature grades have been good this semester, so how about we go over your assignments and leave Haru with Hikaru?"

Hikaru and Rin's staring contest was broken when he rolled his eyes. "Fine," Rin said, placing his hand on the table and pushing himself off the floor.

"Fine," Hikaru bit back and she followed Rin and Makoto with her eyes as they moved to the kitchen table.

* * *

Hikaru jawned, tired. She was quite comfortable, under the blanket and leaning into Haru's side, her head against his shoulder, while he did one of the grammar exercises.

"Haru, how is it going?" Makoto asked from the kitchen and Hikaru looked up, catching Rin watching them with that scowl on his face again.

"Fine," Haru answered, not looking up from the paper he was writing on. Hikaru narrowed her eyes at Rin, trying to figure out what he was thinking. _Probably thinking up some way to steal the boys away from me, _she thought. She stuck her tongue out at him when Makoto wasn't looking and then snuggled closer to Haru, crossing her ankle over his and pulling his left arm around her. Haru's eyes widened as he looked down at her, but he didn't make a comment about it.

"Okay!" Rin stood up, slapping his palms on the table. "Let's call it a day for the studying and do something else!"

"Oh, can we play a game?!" Nagisa shoved his chair back and jumped over to Rin, grabbing his arm. "Huh, Rin, can we?"

Makoto got up too, stretching his back from sitting too long. "If we're going to stop studying, we might as well clear everything up and get the beds ready first. Does that sound like a good idea?"

"But I'm comfortable!" Hikaru whined on purpose. "I don't want to move." She blushed when she felt Haru squeeze her closer to him or a bit. She met his eyes again.

"I'll show you where you can sleep." Letting her go completely, he got up and mentioned for everyone to follow him as he went up the stairs.

Hikaru was surprised to find out she was staying in Haru's room, while the boys would spread out their air matrasses in the currently empty bedroom. Though he did tell her he'd cleaned all the sheets that day, the idea of sleeping in Haru's bed was still strange. She wondered why. She'd slept in Makoto's bed a thousand times, sometimes even with him in it too, and it had never felt awkward or strange.

_Well, maybe it's an age thing,_ Hikaru decided, as she put her backpack down on the bed, _I'm not seven anymore._ Absentmindedly, she started pulling out the clothes Makoto had packed for her. It wasn't until it was all laying down on the bed that she realised his mistake.

"This is why I always pack my own bags," she grumbled as she walked over to the master bedroom. She knocked, even though the door was still open.

"Come in," Makoto said, at the same time Haru asked: "What is it?" Suddenly shy, Hikaru looked at the ground as she explained the problem.

"You packed summer pyjamas for me, Makoto. They're too cold." She realised she was pouting and sighed. "Anyway." She looked back up. "Haru, I was wondering if you maybe had a sweater for me to wear for now?"

"Hm, I'll get it for you." He walked past her, into the hallway, while Makoto gave her an apologetic look. She waved her hand up and down, gesturing that it was fine. "Hikaru."

She quickly followed Haru into his bedroom. "Yes! I'm here!" He was already rummaging through his closet.

"Do you want a sweater or something with a zipper?" he asked, leaning back so he could see her from behind the open closet door.

"I don't really mind either." She looked away from him, again feeling awkward in his room. She glanced at the bed and let out a squeak. "Ah, it's nothing!" she stepped closer to Haru quickly when he turned around again and she waved her arms frantically, trying to keep his eyes away from the bed, where not just her PJs, but her underwear too was laid out. "I mean… Anything will do as long as it's warm!" She let out a nervous laugh.

Haru passed her a blue-white-and-yellow zipped hoodie. "It's warm," was everything he said before he started to leave the room. He stopped and turned back around when she said his name.

"Haru, thank you. I appreciate it."

Once more, Hikaru was reminded that Haru was just as bad with complements as she was, when he averted his eyes at her words.

"No problem," he muttered. Then, his eyes widened and he turned his head the other way so fast, Hikaru couldn't help being curious at what he'd seen. His soft "sorry" was enough to let her know _exactly_ over what he was blushing slightly.

As the group settled down on the floor at the living room table, Hikaru in between Nagisa and Rei and comfortably warm in Haru's hoodie, Hikaru tried really hard not to think about the fact that two of the five guys present had seen her underwear that day.

* * *

"The dice will decide! Who will it be? Who will it be?" Nagisa said in a sing-song voice as he rolled the dice over the table. It knocked into Haru's glass and ended up on a five. "Rei-chan! It's your turn!"

"Again?! How is it even possible to throw me seven times in a row?" The blue-haired boy sighed loudly, as though he was giving up.

Makoto, on his other side, patted his back. "Well, at least this time you're only on one of the faces of the dice." Rei let out another frustrated sound and everyone laughed. Makoto had told Hikaru how Nagisa had put Rei's name on three faces of a box they'd used as a dice when they'd gotten stuck at the abandoned rest house during their summer camp.

Hikaru stopped grinning when she picked out Rin's laugh across the table from her and she looked at him. She was sure he and Rei weren't _that_ close and in her opinion, that meant that he had no right to laugh at Rei's expense.

"Rei-chan," Nagisa called their attention to him again, "please try to balance a cup of water on your head for thirty seconds!"

Soon enough, Rei was sitting at the table with a towel on his head and Nagisa was rolling again. "Three! Hi-chan, that's you. Tell us the scariest ghost story you know!"

"Okay!" That was one she could do. Hikaru loved ghost stories. She'd even worked in a haunted house once during summer, before he mother fell ill.

Nagisa dimmed the lights and Hikaru started telling the story of Kuchisake-Onna. "It all started back in 1979. The long summer day was about to be over as dusk settled over the sky. The children had all gone inside to have dinner with their parents, all but one little boy.

This little boy didn't listen to his parents and he kept playing outside as the sky grew darker and darker. In the distance, a woman in a brown coat approached."

Next to her, she felt Rei shiver, but she still went on.

"The woman was wearing a surgical mask over the lower half of her face. The little boy knew that some people wore them when they were sick, or to make sure they didn't get sick.

When the woman stopped in front of him, the boy looked up from the sandbox and into her dark eyes."

Hikaru cleared her throat and spoke in a lower pitch, "_Am I beautiful?_ the woman asked the little boy and he took a look at her features. She had long, dark hair and nice eyes, so he said _Yes, miss, you are!_

Then the woman ripped off her surgical mask!" Hikaru made a gesture as if she were the woman and startled the boys, giving them a big grin afterwards. Then she moved her finger from her one ear, over her mouth, to her other ear.

"The mask revealed a horribly deformed face! Her mouth was split open from ear to ear, making it monstrously big!" Hikaru ignored the gasp Nagisa let out next to her. "_Am I beautiful NOW?_ the woman demanded now, bringing her face close to the boy. _Am I beautiful NOW?_ The boy was frozen by fear and he was too scared to tell her no.

_Yes, miss, you are, _the little boy told Kuchisake-Onna, after which her grotesque mouth moved into a ghastly smile and from her coat, she pulled a giant pair of bloodied, red scissors.

_Then you won't mind looking like this either!"_

Now that she'd finished the story, she paid enough attention to the reaction to notice the little whimper coming from her right. Immediately, she realised her mistake.

"Ah, Makoto, I'm sorry." She leaned forward, looking at him while he was sitting with his forehead on the table, his head covered with his arms. "I forgot that you're no good with ghost stories."

"It's okay," Makoto managed to say, his voice muffled by his arms. He got up and tried to smile, though it turned out to be a sour, wobbly expression.

"Well, your story _was_ really scary, Hi-chan!" Nagisa said, startling Makoto and Rei some more when he turned the lights up again. Hikaru hadn't even noticed him getting up to do so.

"Sorry to you too, Rei," Hikaru said, elbowing his side softly when she saw how pale his face had become.

"No, don't apologise," Rei said, trying to hide his embarrassment by pushing his glasses up. "It's Nagisa's fault anyway for making you tell a ghost story."

"Oh, well." Nagisa shrugged and picked up the dice again. "Time for the next one!" As he rolled the dice around in his hands, Hikaru picked up her cup of tea and sipped it. Then Nagisa threw it.

"Two! Rin-chan, it's your turn to do something!"

The redhead raised an eyebrow and leaned back a bit, his arms still crossed over his chest – the way they'd been the whole time they'd been playing this game. "What is it then? Running a mile in my pyjamas? Saying a tongue twister? Telling you all about my first love?" He took in a sharp breath and gave Nagisa a challenging look. "Those assignments weren't even remotely hard to do. Give me a proper challenge, Nagisa!"

The blond rubbed his chin as he thought about it. "I was going to tell you to call your captain about what's going on with him and Gou, but…"

At the mention of his sister and Mikoshiba-san, Rin's face turned a little angry, but he didn't say a thing about it and his expression went back to being bored when Nagisa said he had thought of a challenging assignment.

"Rin-chan! You have to kiss someone in this room!"

"WHAT?!" Hikaru snickered at Rin's reaction to the assignment. She had to suppress her giggles when he and Nagisa went into a discussion over whether or not he had to actually carry it out. Of course, she agreed with Nagisa. Rin had asked for a tough assignment himself.

"Rin, I don't think Nagisa will stop bugging you if you don't do it," Haru commented. Rin stopped arguing with Nagisa and his shoulders drooped.

"Fine, I'll do it." He looked at the floor. "Tsukino-san…" He shifted onto his knees and leaned over the table, his eyes closed and his lips puckered. Hikaru moved right out of the way.

"I'm _so _not kissing you, you idiot."

Rin's eyes flew open and he scowled at her again. Hikaru bristled. _How on earth does he have the right to be offended?_

"You're the only girl here. Who else am I supposed to kiss?" he bit at her, but she just shrugged.

"I don't know. Don't particularly care either." She turned her head away, but could still see his reactions in her peripheral vision. Plus, she didn't need perfect eyesight to know what kind of facial expression Rin would be wearing.

"But they're _guys_."

Now Hikaru was just smirking. She looked straight at Rin again, throwing her arms around Rei and Nagisa's neck and pulling them closer to her. She even managed to wink at Rin.

"And they're pretty cute guys too, so take your pick."

Rin sat back and crossed his arms again. "I'm not kissing a guy. So."

"Well, Nagisa said you had to kiss someone and you said you'd do it."

"I figured you'd go along with it! If I knew you'd say no, I wouldn't have agreed to do it."

"So you just _figured_ I desperately wanted to kiss you? What kind of a-"

"Karu-chan," Makoto interrupted and immediately after he said it, blood rushed to Hikaru's cheeks. He'd never called her that in front of other people. "Don't you think that's enough?"

She let out her breath, realising that yes, she was taking things too far. She looked back at Rin, who was purposefully _not_ looking at her. She sighed. She knew she was wrong in treating Rin like he was her arch-nemesis and Makoto knew that she knew. She was just too stubborn to admit it to herself. _And,_ a little voice said in the back of her mind, _it's much easier to be mad at him than any of your own friends._

"Rin-san," she addressed the boy in front of her, but he still didn't so much as glance in her direction. Hikaru rolled her eyes. "I'm sorry." When he turned to her, he even smiled, one eyebrow lifted. "I'm still not kissing you though."

"What? Why not?"

"I barely know you!"

"So? I didn't make this assignment up."

Hikaru turned her attention to the boy on her left. "Yeah, Nagi, why did you even want Rin to kiss someone?"

"Aahhh, well…" Nagisa rubbed the back of his neck, tapping the table with the fingers on his other hand. "I just thought, if you and Rin-chan kissed, maybe it would make you like each other better." Hikaru gaped at him and he cocked his head. "I just wanted everyone to get along together."

"That's a ridiculous theory, Nagisa." Rei was smiling when Hikaru turned to him. "It would take a lot more to make Rin-san and Hikaru like each other."

"Exactly!" Rin and Hikaru agreed with Rei, in unison, which made Makoto chuckle.

Nagisa put a finger to his lips, as if he was considering something. Then he looked at Rei and asked him something that left Hikaru blushing furiously and Rin looking away from her.

"More?"

* * *

"We should pack up the game," Makoto announced, pointing at the clock. Hikaru hadn't even noticed that they'd passed midnight over two hours ago. She suddenly felt tired after seeing the time.

"But there hasn't even been one kiss yet!" Nagisa moaned while everyone got up, apart from Hikaru, who was still sitting down, stretching her back. "Rin never did fulfil his assignment and every sleepover needs a kiss!"

"Why are you so obsessed with kisses tonight?" Rin asked, grabbing some of the glasses and carrying them to the sink.

"I am not obsessed!" Hikaru watched the smaller boy follow Rin into the kitchen. "Like I said, every sleepover needs a kiss! And now we won't get to see one tonight."

"It's alright though, isn't it, Nagisa?" Makoto asked, trying to cheer the boy up, putting the other glasses in the sink too. Rei, standing by the door to the kitchen, waited for them so they could all go upstairs at the same time.

"Hikaru."

She tilted her head back and saw Haru leaning over her as he stood behind her.

"Haru?"

Suddenly, she felt the tip of his nose touch her chin as his lips brushed hers. Her eyes wide open, she watched his Adam's apple bob up and down once as he pressed his lips on hers a little harder.

And then the sensation was gone and she was staring into his eyes, floating above her.

"Ha- Haru?!" three voices sounded from the direction of the kitchen at the same time as Nagisa just did a soft "ooooh".

"Haru?" Makoto was standing right beside Hikaru in a second and she stared straight ahead at the table after her eye-contact with Haru was broken. "Wh- why? Why did you..?"

"Sleepover," was all Haru said. Hikaru felt the warmth leave the air behind her as he stepped away.

"Sleepover?" Makoto repeated.

"Oh. I see." Hikaru got up as Nagisa explained Haru's actions to everyone and walked towards the hallway. "Haru-chan wanted to make it a proper sleepover too! Thank you, Haru-chan!"

The boys followed behind Hikaru as she went up the stairs and passed her with a "goodnight" as she stopped by the door to Haru's room.

Her hand was on the door handle when fingers touched her arm. She turned and looked at Haruka. "Sorry," he said.

She nodded. "Hmm." Then she went into the room.

She couldn't actually be sure of it, but just before she closed the door, she could have sworn she heard him whisper: "Karu-chan."

* * *

**A long chapter this time! Sorry it took me a while to write!**

I'd **_really_**, really like to hear all of you lovely readers' thoughts on this chapter, any and all of those thoughts, so please leave me a **review** with your reaction!

**A giant thank you for reading once again and sticking with this story 3**

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	17. Chapter 16

**EDIT: HOLY FRICK I JUST HAD A LOOK AT THE VIEW COUNT AND IT'S OVER 9000?! THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU!**

**A/N: I am so sorry it's taken me two weeks to get you this chapter, and a short one at that! A lot of my time was taken up by work for uni. Anyway, here it is, I hope you like it!**

* * *

**CHAPTER 16: A Tropical Day! part 1**

* * *

Hikaru stepped out of the bus and immediately pulled her thin scarf tighter around her neck to shield herself from the chilly wind that blew past.

"Oh, I can't wait to get into the warmth inside!" Gou said beside her and the girls started to cross the parking lot in front of the gigantic dome they were headed for.

As soon as Hikaru stepped inside, her arm hooked with Sakura's, she was hit by a wall of heat and humidity.

"Aaah, this is _so_ much better than outside!" Miyo stepped forward and turned around to face the other four girls. "Do you think the guys are already here?"

"They were going out to buy some supplies for the school pool first and then Rei's dad would drive them here," Hikaru told her. The pool was already under a big, plastic cover since it was too cold to swim in it, but Ama-sensei wouldn't let the boys pass up on a big sale.

"They're picking my brother up on the way here," Gou added and she stepped towards the ticket counter. "So I'm guessing they're going to be here soon enough. Me might as well go change already."

"I haven't gone swimming in forever!" Sakura told them as they walked up to the person checking the tickets. "It's been like… two years or something?"

Miyo hummed in agreement. "Second year of middle school. And this is even better! I can't believe Nagisa-kun's father got all these free tickets to Tropical World!"

They went through quickly and made their way to the women's changing rooms. There, Gou finally showed Hikaru the swimsuit the taller girl was supposed to wear.

The day before, Gou and Hikaru had gone out to buy one for Hikaru, since she didn't have one beside her school swimsuit. After trying on so many different one- and two-pieces, Hikaru couldn't even decide and had given Gou her wallet. The redhead had bought one of the swimsuits for her, without Hikaru knowing which one it was.

"Ta-da!" Gou held out the two-piece for everyone to see. "I thought it flattered your skin so much! And it's more cool than cute so I thought you'd prefer this one!"

Gou sure was right about the swimsuit being more cool than cute. Overall, it was made up of a mix of bright yellow, bright green and dark blue. It reminded Hikaru of the Brazilian national flag. The difficult straps that came off of the top were supposed to tie together in the back of Hikaru's neck.

She took it from Gou's hands and gave it another look. She could do with this swimsuit. Glad it didn't have any frilly stuff on it, she smiled at Gou.

"Thank you," she said and the redhead smiled back at her, picking her own red bikini from her bag.

"No problem," was the answer. "I bet you'll make quite the impression on the boys."

* * *

The girls had been inside the pool area for about fifteen minutes when Hikaru heard her name being wailed, followed by the sound of feet slapping on the floor. She turned just in time to see Nagisa bomb into the water next to her.

"Hi," he said as he came up, grinning at her as she wiped the water from her eyes.

"Hi, Nagi. Where are the others?" As she asked it, she saw Rei and Makoto come out of the hallway to the changing rooms, chatting with each other.

"They're coming, I think Haru-chan and Rin-chan are already somewhere in the water."

"Nagisa-kun!" Miyo called as she trudged through the water. "Thank you again for the tickets! This place is awesome!"

A confused expression settled on Nagisa's face as he watched the girl now in front of him. "Who are you?" he asked and Hikaru chuckled.

Miyo pointed at herself, raising an eyebrow in confusion too. "Sugimoto Miyo. How can you not know? I'm in your class, dummy."

Nagisa started waving his hands in apology. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry, Miyo-chan! I hadn't recognised you without your bunny-hat!" Miyo smiled, saying it wasn't a problem, but the blush on her face made it clear she did find it embarrassing that people didn't know who she was without her hat.

Nagisa turned back to Hikaru. "And, Hi-chan, your swimsuit! It looks cute on you!" Just as he said it, Hikaru felt fingertips on her sides and she bit back a scream that still came out as a strangled squeak.

"Makoto!" she said, exasperated, as she turned around to face her attacker. Her eyes widened when she realised that it wasn't, in fact, Makoto who'd poked her sides.

"Sorry, Hikaru," Haru said, removing his fingers from her skin and a blush rushed up to her face as she remembered just how much skin she was showing.

"No, it's okay," she muttered, lowering her glance. When that turned out to give her a perfect view of his abs, she turned around. Makoto and Rei had stepped into the pool and had almost reached them.

Somewhere behind her, Gou called out to her brother and the large splash that hit Hikaru in the head told her Gou had successfully tackled Rin.

"Everyone! I've got an idea!" Chigusa swam up to Makoto's side and had to stand on her tiptoes to be able to keep her mouth above the water, even this close to the edge of the pool. "There's a couple's horse race later on, and since we're divided evenly between boys and girls, I think we should join in!"

"A horse race?" Rei asked. His hand came up to his face to push his glasses up, until he realised he wasn't wearing them. Hikaru chuckled at the face he made.

"The girl sits on the boy's shoulders and you try to steal the ribbons from the other teams," Chigusa explained. "We should team up."

"I'm with brother!" Gou jumped to the occasion. She smiled up at Rin, who raised an eyebrow at the suggestion, but didn't say a word about it.

"I'm with Hikaru, of course," Makoto announced. Hikaru was about to agree when Miyo complained.

"That's no fair. Hikaru is the tallest of us girls, Tachibana-senpai. You two together would tower over all of us and that's not fair. I'll make the teams." She got to work putting each of the girls next to one of the guys, grinning broadly as she guided Sakura towards Rei.

Miyo was kind enough to leave Gou with her brother, but everyone else was shuffled around. Chigusa ended up with Makoto, since she was the shortest, while Miyo shoved Hikaru into Haru, who caught her under her arms, though it wasn't enough to keep them from both falling into the water backwards.

"Miyo!" Hikaru wiped her hair – that was down for the occasion – out of her face as she came up again. She didn't think anything of Haru holding her up at first, but as Miyo apologised and claimed Nagisa as her partner, Hikaru became very aware of the fact that Haru still hadn't let her go. His arms were around her waist and she felt everyone's gazes boring into her.

She turned around in his arms, finding herself closer to him than she would have preferred. _Well, in this situation at least_, a small voice in the back of her mind said.

"Looks like I'll be in you care," she said, hoping to distract the others from the two of them by saying the proper things in that situation.

Haru nodded, as though he realised what she was trying to do. As his embrace fell from her, he answered: "I'll try my best."

* * *

"Get over to that girl in the pink swimsuit!" Hikaru ordered Haru and he turned slightly and started trudging through the water in this new direction.

Throughout the horse race, Hikaru had gone from shy and stunned to be sitting on Haru's bare shoulders, to fiercely competitive. They'd already managed to obtain five of the ribbons the girls had wrapped around their heads.

Miyo and Nagisa had been put out of the game almost immediately and Makoto and Chigusa shortly after, but both Rei and Sakura's team and Gou and Rin's were still chasing others.

"Come on, Haru! Go faster!" Hikaru leaned forward a little in excitement and Haru's grip on her legs tightened just in time to make sure they didn't topple over. His hair brushed the skin of her stomach when he turned his head so he could look up in her direction.

"I'm trying, but you're not helping. Try to keep still."

"I will, we just need to get their-" A loud splash made Hikaru stop talking and Haru turned to see what was going on. Rei and Sakura were standing in the water, next to each other, their hair soaked.

"Team purple has been taken down by TEAM RED! Amazing! Team Red has taken the lead!"

As she and her brother were speeding towards the only other team from their group of friends standing, Gou waved the blue ribbon Sakura had worn in the air.

"You're next!" Rin shouted as they came closer and closer to Hikaru and Haru.

"Haru!" Hikaru patted his head several times in panic, trying to figure out what to do.

"We'll just have to face them," Haru told her, widening his stance so he would be more steady when the siblings reached them.

Hikaru spread her arms and held her palms out towards the enemy, ready for the impact. The girls' fingers intertwined as soon as their hands hit each other.

"We've already got six ribbons!" Gou said, a big smile on her face as she tried to push Hikaru off Haru's shoulders. Hikaru glanced at the multi-coloured ribbons that had collected in the crook of Gou's elbow. Then her eyes met the red ones in front of her.

"We have five, so we'll just have to steal yours!" She pushed harder, knowing she was stronger than the younger girl. Gou lost her balance, but to Hikaru's dismay, Rin seemed to have a tight grip on his sister, keeping them both upright.

Hikaru felt Haru wobble and she looked down to see the boys trying to trip each other with their feet.

"Having a hard time, Haru?" Rin mocked and Hikaru's gaze immediately shifted so she could throw the boy a dirty look.

Before she knew it, Gou flashed a grin much resembling her brother's and instead of pushing against Hikaru's hands, pulled the girls arms towards her, throwing Hikaru completely off balance.

As Hikaru leaned forward sharply, Haru tried to compensate, which was their fatal flaw: Gou changed the direction she was aiming her force again, pushing Hikaru away from her at the same time Haru leaned back.

"Haru!" Hikaru called out as she felt herself slip from his shoulders and crash through the surface of the water. On the way down, her foot connected with something solid, sending a shock of pain through her ankle.

Hikaru was only underwater for a few seconds when her feet found the bottom of the pool and she pushed herself up. The water reach up to her midriff.

Droplets of water hit her face as Haru came up beside her and shook his hair out.

"Are you okay?" she asked him and he nodded. He wasn't looking at her though.

"Rin?" Hikaru frowned shortly and wondered why Haru would ask Rin if _he_ was okay, until one look at the taller boy answered her question.

Rin had a hand pressed against his jaw, Gou no longer on his shoulders, but floating on her back next to him. Around her, the ribbons they'd collected floated away.

Though she wasn't particularly concerned for the red-haired boy's health, Hikaru did feel a little sorry for kicking him in the face.

"Team Red and Team Brazil are OUT!" the commentator called from the side and Hikaru turned to look at him. "What even happened there? Anyway, the winner – by default – is… TEAM PINK!"

"What?!" Hikaru spun around to find her and Haru's original target waving at the spectators. Sure enough, the only ribbon the couple had was their own. She sighed, letting her shoulders droop. "Ah, well, it can't be helped."

She turned back to Rin, who was still gingerly pressing his right hand to the left side of his jaw, where a bit of bruise was starting to show between his fingers.

"I'm sorry, Rin," Hikaru said, though she had never thought she would say those words to him again. She reached out to take a look, but Rin jumped away from her.

"Oh, come on!" Hikaru rolled her eyes in exasperation and stepped forward more quickly this time, grabbing Rin's hand and lifting it away from his face. "I'm just having a look."

Still holding his right hand in her left, she pressed the fingers of her other hand to his jaw – softly and carefully.

"Gou can take care of it." Rin didn't look at her as he said it. He winced when talking accidentally made her poke the bruise.

"I'm not going to," Gou chirped next to them and Hikaru looked down at the halo of hair surrounding the girl's face. "You made us lose, big brother. Besides, it's not my fault you made Hikaru feel like kicking you in the face."

Hikaru's eyes widened in shock at the implication and she was quick to try and clear up the misunderstanding. "It was an accident!" she said to her friend. She returned her gaze to Rin, who was now looking at her too, one eyebrow raised in a questioning manner. "It really was!" She puffed up her cheeks when he didn't lower that eyebrow.

"Fine," she stated, though she really wasn't okay with them thinking she'd hurt someone on purpose, even if it was Rin. "Let's just go and find some ice to put on it. It'll reduce the swelling."

Just before she pulled Rin after her, she turned to Haru. "Haru, I cost us the win. I'm sorry." Then she trotted off towards the side of the pool, trying not to let anyone see how hurt she was by the nearly undiscernible anger on the blue-eyed boy's face.

* * *

**The next chapter will be a continuation of this setting, I'll try to finish it soon!**

**Sorry to all of you wishing Hikaru and Rin would get along more, there's some "peaceful" time coming up soon ;) But I really enjoyed making Rin take a foot in the face *evil laugh* there you go, ElodieKumari94!**

**Thanks so much for all the reactions to the previous chapter! I enjoyed your reactions to the kiss especially, ranging from "NOOOOOOO! MA. KO. TO!" to uwu**

**A big, big thank you to all of you reading this. I hope you'll let me know what you thought of this chapter or the story in general by **_leaving me a review_**. They are much appreciated!**

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	18. Chapter 17

**Well, people, for once it's a quick update! I finished this yesterday, but I wanted to give you guys some time to react to the first part before I posted this. Anyway, I hope you enjoy!**

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**Chapter 17: A Tropical Day! part two**

* * *

Rin sucked in a sharp breath as Hikaru touched the ice compress to his swollen jaw. She had sat him down in the restaurant area, on a stone bench that was warmed from the inside. Around them, palm trees reached towards the high domed ceiling. There were several different deep green plants in the planters around them, each donning exotic, brightly coloured flowers.

"How's that?" Hikaru asked. She was squatting in front of him, looking up at his face. Rin nodded.

"Better, thanks." He looked away from her as she pulled a chair over so she could sit in front of him, instead of on the bench next to him.

"I really am sorry," she added, just to be sure. "I really did a number on you there, didn't I? I didn't mean for it to happen."

"Ah, I know, I know." Hikaru looked at his face again when he said that and she saw him smile cautiously, only lifting one corner of his mouth. "It's the risk of the game. Things happen. Gou knows too, she just knows that we… don't get along."

Hikaru couldn't help but smile a little too. "I wouldn't necessarily say we don't get along. It's more like…" She paused for a second and thought about it. "... you just annoy me."

"Eh?!" Rin balled his fists, the icepack dangling from his hand. Hikaru chuckled when she saw the twitching eyebrow and the scowl he'd thrown at her more often than not over the past few weeks. She pushed his hand back to his jaw.

"Just kidding, just kidding," she assured him. "Keep cooling that, will you, or everyone at your school will think you got beat up come Monday."

"Okay, okay, miss." He gave her an expression she figured was supposed to be pout. She couldn't be quite sure with the way half of his lower face was covered with either the icepack or his hand.

"No, I think," she continued, shifting in her seat so she could lean against its back. "We just got off on the wrong foot." She looked up at the fake sky that was painted on the roof. _Why had that been again?_ It had already been three weeks and she'd seen the guy plenty during that time, but they'd always been bickering or full-out fighting.

"You did," Rin told her. Not understanding, she cocked her head as she looked at him. "You got off on the wrong foot. I came to Haru's house, you decided to hate me from there on out."

Suddenly, Hikaru remembered and she looked away in embarrassment. _Really, I was behaving like a little child._ Sighing, she thought she might as well get this over with.

"I don't hate you, Rin," she explained. "I was just… feeling a little left out, I guess. You guys spent every day together that week. But I shouldn't have taken it out on you, I'm sorry."

"Hmm." Rin nodded, half-smiling again. "I guess that makes sense. You're very close to Makoto, right?"

Hikaru nodded. "He's my best friend."

Rin raised that eyebrow again, though this time Hikaru was sure it was in surprise and not contempt. "I thought Nagisa was, the way he clings to you."

"Nagisa is Nagisa." She shrugged her shoulders and grinned. "Nagisa is Nagisa, Rei is Rei and Gou is Gou. But Makoto is special. I've known him my whole life."

"And Haru?"

For a second, Hikaru was stunned at the question, then embarrassed as a blush warmed her cheeks. She cursed the fact that she lost her tan so soon after summer.

"Haru… is a friend too," she answered. She wondered why she suddenly felt sad. The image of his expression earlier filled her mind again. Eyes slightly narrowed, looking straight ahead and not meeting her eyes, eyebrows drawn together a bit.

What had he been so angry about? As far as Hikaru could remember, Haru had never cared about competitions, with the exception of wanting his team to win at regionals, so he wouldn't be angry with her for losing the game. _Right?_

So that left Rin. Hikaru wished she could kick herself in the face. Of course that was it. She'd been treating Rin so badly all the time, while he was Haru's dear friend.

"Rin, I'm really sorry for the way I've been acting towards you."

"Huh?" He was obviously taken aback by the sudden apology, but he recovered quickly. "Ah, me too, I haven't really taken the high road either."

She gave him a small smile, glad that was resolved. Hopefully she would be able to show Haru she'd made up with Rin. Hopefully he wouldn't stay mad at her for kicking him, even if it was an accident.

"You are in a very apologetic mood today, Tsukino-san."

"Hikaru."

"Hmm?"

"You can call me Hikaru," she repeated, a little louder. Then, before she could lose her resolve, she smiled at him for real. "None of my friends call me by my surname."

* * *

The pool started emptying around four, as a lot of people had to get back home on time for dinner. Hikaru had spent the past hour chatting with Rin, while she looked at his bruise from time to time to make sure the swelling was going down.

Now she was getting slightly nervous at the thought of having to join the group again. Though Rin didn't look like a hamster with stuffed cheeks anymore, his jaw had a nasty blue colour spread over the left side.

As they passed the drinks stand on their way back, she could see the rest of the group had already gathered near the changing rooms.

"Hey, Rin." Hikaru slowed down a bit.

Rin looked down at her and waited for her to continue. When she didn't, he called her name softly. "Hikaru?"

Hikaru breathed in deeply. "Could you do me a favour?"

"Depends. What is it?"

"Could you maybe…" She stopped midsentence, shaking her head. "Ah, never mind." She wanted to pick up speed again, but two hands on her shoulders stopped her completely.

"No, you've got me curious now. What is it?" He was standing a little close to her and she felt a little uneasy at his hands being on her bare shoulders, but she figured it was nothing too bad.

"I just wondered, could you maybe smile when we get back to them?"

"Huh? Why?" Hikaru felt annoyed when that eyebrow went up again.

"It's just… I want them to see that we're friends now," she said, because it was true after all. "Besides, it looks better on you than that scowl."

On cue, he flashed her a grin, though it was a complete 180 from the genuine smile she'd pictured when she asked.

"Sure, but can I ask for something in return?"

Hikaru nodded. It was only fair.

Within an instant, Rin was closer than she'd though he would come, his face taking up her entire view.

"Well then, give me that kiss you denied me that evening."

* * *

Hikaru sat in between Makoto and Haru, twiddling her thumbs as they patiently waited for water and menus.

The whole group had settled down in the Hawaiian restaurant situated in the same dome as the swimming pool. It had been a bit of a shuffle for the restaurant to accommodate a party of ten, but after pushing the two tables by the bench in front of the window together, they didn't have to split up into separate groups.

Though she had expected to have Makoto sit on one of the chairs to her side, she was surprised to find Haru to her right, then Rin at the head of the table, on the bench. Gou and Chigusa sat across from her and Haru, chatting animatedly with Makoto and Miyo, while Sakura just listened to Nagisa and Rei talk about whatever they were talking about.

_This is bad,_ Hikaru thought, sneaking a glance at Haru, who still had the steely look on his face. _I shouldn't have lost it with Rin earlier._

After Rin's ridiculous request, Hikaru had acted on instinct, slapping him across the cheek – the one that was already bruised from the kick she'd landed earlier. She'd barged into the changing room after that, getting showered and changed quickly, whilst Gou made jokes about in what a pinch Hikaru would be if her brother had been a masochist.

She hadn't thought about what Haru would think of her treating Rin that way again, until the girls had all stepped out into the hallway, where the boys had already been waiting, and that look he wore now too had been on his face.

_Well, that's that for my plan,_ she thought. She could still feel the metaphorical steam come out of her ears when she thought about how ridiculous Rin had been. On their way to the restaurant, he'd pulled her apart again, telling her he had been joking, but Hikaru didn't think it was funny. _You don't just go about kissing someone._

She glanced at Haru again, only to catch his gaze and turn right back around again. _Haru had,_ she thought and she fought the urge to touch her fingers to her lips.

She looked up when a glass was set down in front of her.

"I've brought the menu's," a waiter announced as he set down a glass of water for everyone first. "Please let me know what you wish to order." He bowed and stepped aside while they all went over the menu.

Hikaru sighed happily, elbowing Makoto lightly and showing him the menu. "They have beef stew."

Makoto smiled and patted her head. "Do they? I'm happy for you." Hikaru nodded and returned to her menu to pick out a drink.

"She looks the way Gou looks when she sees muscles," Nagisa said softly, probably to Rei, but Hikaru caught it anyway. Still, she didn't really mind. She knew she got a little weird when it came to beef. She and her mother rarely had the money to buy the meat when Hikaru was younger, so it had always been a special treat to her.

The whole group was able to order quite quickly and the food arrived in no-time too. Hikaru watched as Haru's salmon dish and Makoto's soup were set down in front of them, still waiting patiently for her own stew. Her bowl came last and as soon as the waiter had turned around, Hikaru clapped her hands together.

"Thanks for the food!" she said, grinning as the others said it too. Then she picked up her spoon and tried her first mouthful. _Delicious!_ she thought, looking at Makoto and excitedly pointing at the bowl while she munched on the vegetables.

"I'm glad it's good," Makoto replied to her unspoken statement. He patted her head once more before picking up his chopsticks. "Well, then. Thanks for the food!"

"Hey, Nagisa," Hikaru head Rei whisper, "I've never seen Hikaru act like this."

"She's like a little child," Sakura added.

Hikaru couldn't bring herself to mind at all.

* * *

"Hikaru-chan, what are you having for dessert?" Chigusa asked, pulling Hikaru from her happy I-had-beef daze.

"Ah, just mixed fruits I think," she answered, scanning the dessert menu in front of her. "How about you?"

"Oh, I'm not having desert." When everyone looked at her questioningly, she explained. "Well, I have to watch my weight a little. I'm not as active as you guys all are with your sports. So…"

"Nonsense," Gou went against her. "You have just as much exercise as I do." For a moment, they stayed still as red eyes met light-blue ones. Then Gou's eyes widened in shock. "Does that mean I can't get dessert either?" She slumped against the back of the padded bench.

Hikaru noticed a glint in the corner of her eye and turned her head to see Rei adjust his glasses. "You've both been swimming today which means that at a body mass of…" He trailed off into muttered calculations and everyone shut his mumbling out as they looked at the two friends that were feeling down for not being able to have dessert.

"Ah… Matsuoka-san, Hanamura-san…" Everyone turned to Sakura as the girl suddenly spoke up after being quiet for most of the evening. "I think what Rei-kun is trying to say is that you've both exercised enough to indulge yourselves in a dessert." She looked at Rei, who had stopped muttering. "Right, Rei-kun?"

He nodded, moving his dessert menu onto the middle of the table. "You will net to zero if you have any of these, Gou-san, Hanamura-san."

Chigusa nodded. "Thank you, Ryugazaki-kun." She suddenly looked up, as if she'd just thought of something. "Everone," she said, "isn't it about time we all start calling each other by our given names?"

"Hmm, that seems about right," Makoto added, smiling his usual kind smile. Hikaru nodded in agreement.

"We're all friends after all."

"Okay! I will go first, then!" Chigusa dipped her head since she couldn't bow with her lower body under the table. "Hanamura Chigusa. Please call me Chigusa! Chigu-chan for the girls, right girls?"

She received a smile from each of them and they all took their turns reintroducing themselves.

"Seo Sakura! Nice to make your acquaintance!"

"Sugimoto Miyo!"

"Matsuoka Rin. Even though I have a girly name, I _am_ a boy." Hikaru blinked at how rehearsed the sentence sounded.

"Hazuki Nagisa! And this is Ryugazaki Rei!"

"Ah, Nagisa, I wanted to introduce myself properly…"

"Matsuoka Kou is my name!" Gou said with a wink.

"Gou," Nagisa started the everlasting argument over Gou's name again.

"Well, I guess it's my turn. Tachibana Makoto. It's nice to meet you all." He poked Hikaru's side and she let out a squeak in surprise.

"Ah, Tsukino Hikaru, everyone. Please call me what you like, I don't mind."

"Nanase Haruka," Haru concluded the introductions. To his side, Rin chuckled.

"What's funny?" Gou asked her brother, a gentle smile on her face upon hearing the sound Rin rarely made.

"Haru, Hikaru," Rin mused. "It kind of sounds alike, doesn't it. Haru, Hikaru, Haru, Hikaru." He leaned back and grinned at Hikaru. "It's sounds better if we shorten it further, doesn't it, Haru? Karu?"

The glasses on the table shook when Haru suddenly stood up, slapping his palm on the table and shoving his chair back. His eyes settled on a surprised Rin.

"Don't call her that."

"Call her what?" Rin looked over to Hikaru for support, but she was too busy watching the suddenly very interesting table. _Only Makoto calls me that,_ she thought, _sometimes._ Realising Hikaru wasn't going to give him any clues, he ran through his own words again. "Karu?"

Another slap as Haru stood up straight and stepped closer to Rin. "I said don't call her that."

"Why not? What's wrong with calling her Karu?" At the mention of that name, Haru's hand – the one on the table – clenched into a fist. Rin didn't seem to notice. "You don't mind, right, Hikaru?"

Hikaru internally debated whether or not she minded. Meanwhile, she watched the muscles in Haru's arm tighten when she didn't answer.

Before she knew it, her hand was covering his fist. "It's alright, Haru," she started to say, but before she could finish, Haru interrupted her.

"I'm leaving," he said, his voice flat and devoid of emotion as he removed his hand from under hers, grabbed his coat from his chair and put his share of the bill on the table. "Bye."

"Haru." Hikaru watched as he walked away, putting his coat on and waiting for the string of people stepping in to pass. Just as he stepped out, Hikaru came to her senses. She turned to Makoto, who was already nodding, knowing what she was thinking.

"I'm sorry everyone, I'm going after Haru." She hastily gathered her bags and coat. "I'll see you in school. See you, Rin." She started walking away, but stopped for a second to turn to Rin. "And Haru's right, please don't call me Karu."

* * *

**Ahaha, sorry for everyone that wanted Rin and Hikaru to get along perfectly. They can be friends, but they kind of have clashing personalities. I totally think this is how Rin could act in front of girls, since he doesn't really have experience with them, but he thinks this behaviour is cool and attractive. Also, I'm not a sadist, so I'll keep the Rin-slapping to a minimum from now on xD**

**In case people are a little confused about the name thing: Karu is a rather unusual shortening of Hikaru and the only one who's ever called her that is Makoto, and only when they were little and very rarely. It's a special thing to her.**

**COMING UP (well, not directly): more of Hikaru's backstory, more basketball, more swimming, more Rei and Nagisa, and (because I know I've been neglecting them a bit over the last few chapters) some more MakoHika fluff**

**I hope you keep reading ;)**

* * *

**Well, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, **please leave me a review **on your way out to let me know what you thought :)****_  
_**

**And I just realised I use a lot of emoticons :D sorry**

* * *

**A giant thank-you to everyone who read this story, especially the ones that reviewed, or clicked favourite or follow in this short update time:**

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	19. Chapter 18

**I love you guys so much, so here's some fluffy fluff fluff!**

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**Chapter 18: There's a difference!**

* * *

Hikaru shifted in her bed, staring at the ceiling. She had no idea what time it was and she didn't feel like looking at her alarm clock to confirm her suspicion that it was really late.

She'd gone after Haru, looking for him in the parking lot and at the bus stop, but she couldn't find him there. By the time she realised he might be taking the train home, she was too late to catch him before it left.

Hikaru's hands clenched into her hair. _I'm __**good**__ with people,_ she thought, _so then why is everything so different when it comes to him?_ She flattened her palms over her face and rubbed her cheeks. _Everyone else is so easy to figure out, but Haru…_

She groaned, sitting up again. Her blanket fell away from her chest and she shivered. It was getting quite cold, nearing the end of October. Outside, it was raining, the droplets sometimes making noise against her window when the wind blew them that way.

A memory resurfaced and, like each time it did, Hikaru touched her fingers to her lips. Even if she could clearly see Haru leaning over her again, remember the way he'd looked her straight in the eyes and relive the shocked state she'd been in afterwards, it was getting hard to recall exactly how she'd _felt_ in that moment their lips had connected. It was like she was trying to hold on to a handful of water, squeezing it out through her fingers the more she tried to remember.

If it wasn't for the clear picture of the other boys' absolutely shocked faces, Hikaru would have wondered if it had really happened. _And after that…_ Hikaru felt a blush creep up to her cheeks as she remembered what Haru had said when he left her at the door to his bedroom. _It's not just Makoto who calls me Karu-chan,_ she thought. _But I don't mind if it's Haru._

A flash caught her eye and she was pulled from her thoughts as a loud rumble came a few seconds after it. She got up, pulling her duvet up around her shoulders like a cape. Behind her curtain, another flash lit up the outside world.

She put her slippers on quickly, trying to keep her feet warm as she walked out of her room and to Makoto's door. She knocked softly and opened the door to find Makoto sitting up in his bed, the bedside lamp still on. "Hikaru."

She closed the door behind her before she spoke. "Can't sleep?" she asked him.

Makoto shook his head and pointed his thumb over his shoulder to gesture towards the window. "The weather's keeping me up." Hikaru nodded. She wasn't surprised.

"Scooch over, I'm sleeping here."

Without protest, Makoto moved so he was sitting in the corner where his bed met the wall, pulling his cover after his legs to make place for her. Hikaru kicked off her slippers, rolled her duvet around her until she could lie down on his bed like a blanket burrito, her back to him. "Now go to sleep, Makoto."

"Yes, ma'am," he answered, the smile clear in his voice. He moved down the bed until he was lying down too. "Could you turn off the light?"

Hikaru turned so she was leaning on her right elbow, reaching out for the light switch when she saw the photo frame on Makoto's night stand. She picked it up and turned onto her back, freeing her other arm from the duvet as well.

"Hey, I didn't know you still had that picture. I didn't see it in your room before."

"Hmm?" Makoto turned his head towards her and she held the frame out for him to take. "Ah, I think mum found it and put it here again. I had been wondering where it was after we found that photo in that box from your mother."

"We're so little," Hikaru commented. She looked at the two little kids in the photo. They were sitting on the steps in front of Hikaru's house at the time, tiny Hikaru hugging Makoto as she looked into the camera.

"Five or something?" Makoto shifted and leaned over Hikaru to put the frame back on the night stand. He lay back down and closed his eyes while Hikaru looked at his face, trying to figure out what he was thinking.

"What do you think about that story Chigusa told us on the bus?" Hikaru inquired after flicking off the light. "The one about the Greek myth?"

"The soul mate thing?" Makoto shrugged. "I don't know. I've never really thought about things like that. "How about you, do you believe in soul mates?"

Hikaru blinked when Haru popped up in her mind again. Quickly shaking the picture out of her head, she pulled her own duvet over her shoulders again. "I do," she said. "I mean, I wasn't sure at first. I mean, my mother loved Luca and he said he loved her too, but just look at how that ended. But then I thought, maybe we're looking at the whole soul mate thing in the wrong way. One soul split up into two people, that's what Chigusa said, right?" She turned her head to her left and saw Makoto nodding at her. "So it means you won't be complete without that other person. But it doesn't say anything about love. At least, romantic love."

Makoto frowned. "I don't really get what you're going at, Hikaru."

"Well, couldn't a soul mate be anyone? Someone you can't live without? That doesn't have to be your romantic partner, does it?" Hikaru looked up at the ceiling again and saw that one of Makoto's glow-in-the-dark stars from years ago was still stuck to it. "It could just as easily be a friend, or your parent, your child. That's what I was thinking."

"Hmm, I guess that makes sense."

"Well, Rin made a comment this afternoon about us being very close and I agreed. I think, if you look at the soul mate thing this way, it kind of explains why you are different to me than Nagisa and Rei are."

Hikaru ignored the way Makoto sat up immediately, gaping at her when she implied he was her other half, and she went on before she could lose the courage to do so.

"But it doesn't tell me why Haru's different too."

* * *

"Haru?" Hikaru pressed her lips together and turned her head away from her best friend. Now that she'd said it, she would have to go through this talk. And though she was happy she'd finally gotten it off her chest, it didn't make it any less embarrassing to talk about.

"Hmm. Haru."

"In what way do you mean?" Makoto tugged on her duvet when she didn't answer. "Karu-chan."

"I'm thinking!" Hikaru sighed and pulled the duvet up to her chin. For some reason, snuggling into that cocoon of warmth made her feel more courageous. "Okay, so. I've always had lots of friends. I get along with people. And of course, you have always been different from the others. You are like… well not a brother I would say, but more… an extension of myself? The me outside my own body?" Hikaru blushed a little, knowing her words could come across in the wrong way. But with Makoto being the one listening, she knew there wouldn't be a misunderstanding. "Having you by my side is always just… natural. And then I came here and there's Haru and Nagisa and Gou, Rei, Chigusa, the girls from the basketball club… and we get along so well."

She tried her best to think back all the way, to determine where things had really changed. She couldn't point out the exact moment.

"Haru… he and I didn't get along at first, but that was more because I didn't get him. So we talked and it was all good. I can't even begin to count the amount of time I've spent with you two over the past two months. But now he's angry with me and I can't blame him because I was _horrible_ to Rin, but I thought I'd made it all good again tonight and then he storms off like that and I just really don't-"

She was cut off when Makoto's hand settled over her mouth. She craned her neck and the back of her head bumped into his chest.

"You talk so much when you get nervous." He removed his hand and snuggled closer, both their duvets forming a thick barrier between them. "I don't know where you got the idea Haru's angry with you."

"But-"

"He isn't, Hikaru. He was… let's say irritated tonight at dinner, but I don't think it was for the reason you've concocted in that head of yours. You overthink things."

Hikaru smiled at that. "Yeah, I kinda do, don't I."

"You always have," he answered. "But about Haru… You know what he was like before, don't you? I told you about him. It's only a recent thing that he's been coming out of his shell a little. I don't think he really knows how to act around you."

"Around me?" Hikaru was curious now.

"You know, a girl. I mean, he's _interacted_ with girls before, but you're… like you said, you spent a lot of time with him and me. He's gotten used to that, but I think…"

"You think?" she repeated after him, curious about what he was going to say, anticipating the continuation of that sentence anxiously.

"Ah, never mind. I'm not sure about that yet. But I can say for sure that he isn't angry."

Hikaru let out a long breath. "Good. That's a weight lifted." She turned around in her cocoon, resting her head against the blanket over Makoto's chest. "Thanks, Mako-chan."

His breathing hitched for a second, but then he relaxed and Hikaru felt his arm settle around her duvet burrito. "You're welcome."

They settled into a nice, comfortable silence and Hikaru was glad she seemed to have taken his mind off of the weather going on outside. She let out a big yawn as she felt sleep tug at her consciousness.

"You know, my classmates thought we were a couple," Makoto mentioned. Hikaru didn't shift from her position.

"Don't they always?" she asked. "I don't know why it's so hard to understand that a guy and a girl can be friends."

"Well, you do go about saying stuff like I'm your soul mate," he teased and Hikaru elbowed him in the side. "Ouch, I'm just kidding!"

"You know what I meant," she mumbled, burying her nose in the blanket.

"Yeah, I do. I guess that's what they see between us though. That we know each other so well."

"Well, it's a common misconception," Hikaru decided, hoping Makoto would leave the topic at that.

"Well, even Haru…"

"Eh? Haru thought…" Hikaru lifted her head and saw Makoto was watching her too, his chin pulled into his neck so far it made him look funny. She poked at the folds of skin. "You look rather unattractive, Makoto."

"Shut up, I can't talk to you otherwise." He did lay his head back on his pillow after the comment though. But she could see he was smiling.

"But you were saying…"

"Haru thought we might… _like_ like each other. He asked me whether there was anything going on between us a weeks ago."

"Huh? When was that?"

"The sleepover." For a moment, Hikaru was confused. "When it came out I'd given you your first kiss."

_Oh, __**that**__ sleepover. Before or after I saw you in the hall?_ Thinking about it, Hikaru realised she had forgotten about her resolve to talk to Makoto regarding that kiss back then.

"Makoto, can I ask you something?" She rested her head again, knowing she couldn't ask him this question while looking him in the eye.

"Hmm? Of course."

"I've been meaning to ask for a while… why did you kiss me back then?"

"Oh, I don't really know." To Hikaru's surprise, he sounded very casual, not at all like the blushing and awkward Makoto she'd expected. "I wasn't even thirteen yet and I wasn't going to get to see my friend anymore. When I talked about it at school, they told me that when a boy and a girl are as close as you and I, they are in love with each other. And I thought, when people love someone, they kiss them." He chuckled and Hikaru felt the laugh vibrate through his chest. "I was a silly kid back then."

Hikaru thought about that. _What was Haru's reason? _She didn't want to think he really had just kissed her because Nagisa wanted to see a kiss before he went to bed. For some reason, the thought of that being the truth really pissed her off.

"Don't worry, I won't do it again," Makoto said, ruffling her hair as he hugged her to his side. She felt the urge to tickle him senseless, but her hands were still stuck in the cocoon made by her duvet.

"You better not. I was so confused back then, you idiot." Hikaru shook her head to stop him from ruffling her hair further and he though he did stop, he left his hand on her head, his fingers threaded with locks of light blue hair.

"They weren't completely off you know, back in primary school." Hikaru yawned again and made a non-committal sound to let him know she'd heard him. "I may not have been or be in love with you," he confessed, "but I do love you, Karu-chan."

Though Hikaru had always felt very close to Makoto without ever being uncomfortable or embarrassed when she was alone with him, she felt a blush creep up her neck now. She thanked the heavens that she'd already turned off the lights.

"You too, Mako-chan. Now shut up and go to sleep."

His chuckle sounded through the room once more and he petted her head once more before taking his arm off of her and turning on his side, away from her.

"Yes, ma'am. Goodnight."

* * *

**Well, as promised, the MakoHika fluff you guys were craving :)**

**SEVERAL POINTS:**

**- I saw that the view count has passed the 10k! Thank you all for reading this so much and sticking with me!**

**- Also, a big, big thank you to all those lovely people who keep reviewing for me! I love reading your reviews, they give me a lot of motivation to keep going and getting chapters out quickly. All your thoughts and hopes for the story make me really happy and I just hope that my writing will keep making you happy!**

**- On another point:** _I'm doing another Q&A_**, since the last one went so well. So please leave me your questions in a review or a PM and I'll answer them the best I can! More character sheet questions are also always welcome, I'll add them to it and post the whole thing at the bottom of the Q&A.**

**- The photo mentioned in this chapter is linked in my profile! I'm not really content with the way Makoto doesn't really look like Makoto, but please excuse me for that!**

**Please let me know what you thought about this chapter by **_leaving me a review_**!**

**Shout-out to the people that gave me a review, favourite or follow for this story since the last update:**

**Whoever "Guest" was this time**  
**Molly Grace 16**  
**ElodieKumari94**  
**arisushionji**  
**DragonSlayer2187**  
**MachineWash**  
**StormyInk **_(- check them out! Amazing writing, especially the RivaMika SnK fics!)_  
**IAmTheRedMaskHeWears**  
**cartoonsAREepic **_(I laughed so hard at your review :p )_  
**EGUZMAN**  
**Ninjakittyx3**  
**Kanzaki Aoi**  
**UnseenFaces**  
**Caigdimo**


	20. Chapter 19

**I'm on a roll, peeps, second chapter within 24 hours. Am I spoiling you?**

* * *

**Chapter 19: Her past and her present!**

* * *

"Hikaru, sweetie, could you come and give me a hand here?"

Hikaru looked up from the game Ren and Ran had managed to convince her and Makoto to play with them.

"Sure. Just a second." She gave Ren a kiss on the top of his head and lifted him off her lap, setting him down in her seat while he was still concentrating on his next move.

They had set the game up on the dining room table, since it was bigger than the coffee table in the living room, so Hikaru could still watch them play as she stepped into the open kitchen to help Mrs Tachibana with the preparations for dinner.

"What can I do?" she asked, pulling up her sleeves and washing her hands. An apron swished into place as Mrs Tachibana draped it over her.

"If you could take care of the soup, that would be fantastic. I have to keep my eye on this new dish here. I want it to be perfect."

Hikaru stirred the clear stock in the high pan and looked at the ingredients Mrs Tachibana had put on the counter for her to use. "Tonjiru?" The older woman turned to smile at her.

"Don't worry, I'll help you in between. If you could chop all the ingredients, that would be more than enough. Oh, I haven't been this nervous for a dinner party since that time I had Ryou's parents over for the first time. It's a bit scarier when it's his boss."

Hikaru knew that Mr Tachibana was up for a promotion at work, something that would really help the family now that they had taken in another teenager. She realised money had been a bit tight for the Tachibana's lately, so she wanted to do as much as she could to help her substitute father get the promotion.

She rummaged through a drawer until she found a knife she was sure she could use without hurting herself, then put it aside and started washing carrots.

"Mrs Tachibana, I've been meaning to ask…"

"Hikaru, dear," she was interrupted by Mrs Tachibana and she turned her head for a moment, only to see her still working on the other dishes, "don't you think that by now you can be a little less formal around us? You can call us by our first names."

"Ah, I don't know, I hadn't really thought about it."

"Well, we've known you all your life, Hikaru. And now that you live here, and probably will for a while, you might as well loosen up. For all intents and purposes, Ryou and I think of you as our daughter. We don't expect to take in the place of your parents and we don't want to either, but we're trying our best to be there for you. I hope you know that."

Hikaru felt a lump in her throat. She really was grateful to the Tachibana family and she knew things would have been a lot worse had it not been for her mother's best friend butting in.

"Aiko…" she started, but she realised it felt a little off. "Aunt Aiko, thank you. I really appreciate you being here for me. You and Mr… you and… and uncle Ryousuke."

Tachibana Aiko let out a soft chuckle and turned to smile at Hikaru. "Well, it's not quite just our given names, but it's good enough. But you were going to say something?"

Hikaru felt her nerves were suddenly on end. She wasn't sure whether this was the right time, or if there would ever be a right time to ask this. Not even if she was supposed to ask this…

"Aunt Aiko, I was wondering, you knew my father, right?"

At that question, Aiko stilled for a second. She put her own knife down and turned to lean against the counter.

"I did. Why do you ask?"

"Well, it's just… mum never really talked about him and I was getting curious after I found all those things she'd left me…" Hikaru's let the rest of the sentence hanging as she was suddenly sure she'd made the wrong choice. "Never mind, I shouldn't be asking you this."

When Hikaru turned back to chopping the carrots up in thin circles, the sound of the knife hitting the chopping board was all she heard for a while.

"No, I'll tell you about Tomoya. I was just a little… surprised that Suzuna hadn't yet. I always told her not to leave you hanging."

Aiko turned around again, looking after the dishes she was preparing while she talked.

"Tomoya and your mother… they met when Suzuna and I were still in college. Your mum and I shared an apartment in Tokyo and Ryousuke had followed us to the same college.

Your father didn't go to school anymore. Tomoya told me had had enrolled into the JMSDF* right out of high school, even though his parents – your grandparents – didn't approve.

We were at a midsummer festival near the marine base when your parents met. I don't think I've ever seen two people more in love than those two. During his two weeks of leave, they got a lot closer and I remember that Suzuna was devastated when he had to go back to work."

Hikaru hadn't heard any of this before. It took her a while to realise she'd stopped working on the soup and get back to chopping vegetables again while listening to the words she'd longed for ever since she'd been old enough to realise she was supposed to have a father and didn't have one.

"Suzuna waited for him to come back though. In the meantime, she worked on her academics – harder than I'd ever seen her work before – and they wrote letters back and forth. Suzu once showed them to me. Tomoya could be a real romantic sometimes.

So eight months later, Tomoya has a long leave from his duties: several months. Suzu was done with her degree and together, they looked for an apartment in the Tokyo area and moved in together. They got married during that time too, before me and Ryou actually.

Suzu fell pregnant shortly after and I was so happy for her when she told me. She knew it was going to be a bit hard on her to raise a child while her husband was often off to do his job, but she didn't mind if it was for Tomoya.

A little before the summer, Suzu lost her baby, though. She was devastated. I felt so… I felt a little guilty. I was pregnant with Makoto, my belly already showing and all while my best friends had lost her baby. Even worse, Tomoya was out at sea. I often went over from here to her, just to try and keep her mind off of things for the evening, but it hardly ever worked.

It wasn't until after the summer that she started brightening up a little more. I didn't know the reason for it until two months after Makoto was born. She was pregnant again and hadn't wanted to tell anyone until she had passed the three-month mark.

Ah, could you turn down the heat under those potatoes maybe?"

Hikaru looked up to see white foam come from the pan, hissing when it hit the stove. She hadn't even heard it before.

"Well, where was I? Ah, of course.

Your mother, she didn't have any problems when she was pregnant with you. Tomoya had taken care of all the paperwork to request a leave of absence for when you were born, so he could help out in the first few months.

But you came early, darling. I guess you couldn't really wait. You were delivered in the hospital, three weeks premature. Luckily, there weren't any health issues. Tomoya had called Ryou on his way from the base to the hospital and the two of us went to the hospital as fast as we could too. On such short notice, we couldn't get a babysitter for Makoto, so we took him with us.

You have that picture, right? From the hospital?"

Hikaru nodded, her whole body on edge because she knew what the next progression of that story was going to be.

"Well, I wish we had some kind of video footage, so you could see your father. Tomoya was so proud to have you. He didn't let go of your for most of the day and definitely never let his eyes leave you. You're quite a bit like him, actually."

"Really?" Hikaru pulled at her hair. "I saw that I get my hair colour from him, but I didn't really see any other resemblances."

"No, you don't look like him necessarily, you _are_ like him. Full of energy, athletic, open, friendly. Someone people want to get to know. Oh, but you are tall like him. At least, you definitely didn't get your length from your mother." Aiko chuckled again and Hikaru couldn't help but join her. She remembered how she'd grown taller than her mother by the time she was twelve. It wasn't an impressive feat to be taller than Suzuna.

"I'm glad," Hikaru said, "that I'm like him. At least that way I have something of his, right? Thank you for telling me about him, aunt Aiko." She turned back to the vegetables and started chopping again.

"You don't want to hear the rest?" Aiko asked, clearly surprised. Hikaru shook her head.

"I know what comes next," she said, her voice flatter than normal. _I loved him. We got married. We had you. _She'd heard those words more than enough times, every time she had asked to know more about the man that Tsukino Tomoya had been. The discussion had always been ended by the same words. **_He died._**

"I'm done cutting," Hikaru announced, untying the apron and Aiko was quick to take it off her hands. Trying to disperse the dark mood that had settled over them, Hikaru smiled and inquired: "Is there anything else I can do for you?"

"Ah, yes." The older woman picked something out of the drawer behind her and pressed it into Hikaru's hands. "I just saw that I've forgotten the seaweed. Could you please go and get it at the supermarket?"

* * *

_***JMSDF*= Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (Japanese Navy)**_

* * *

Hikaru blew on her hands as she walked through the streets. It was getting cold fast and at the moment, the breeze that came in from the ocean was a little brisk.

_I'm glad I got to hear about you, dad,_ Hikaru thought, for the first time feeling comfortable addressing him in her mind. Knowing some more about his character made him feel at ease. If she was so much like her, he wouldn't have minded either.

She was glad she'd stopped the conversation when she did. Honestly, she didn't want to know about what happened next. What she had been trying to do for years now, was imagine what life would have been like if her father had lived. She didn't want to know how he had died, because she was sure that that – for her at least – would take away the possibility to daydream about a different outcome.

The bell of the store 'ding'ed when she stepped though the sliding doors, the slightly warmer air welcoming her. She could see the counter from the exit and waved at the girl behind it, knowing she was also a first-year at Iwatobi High School.

_Seaweed, seaweed…_ Hikaru scanned the shelves as she made her way through the aisles. She had joined Mrs Tachibana in shopping several times, but she'd never really bothered to learn where things were stored in the supermarket. _It has to be somewhere around here, right?_

She didn't even notice there was someone else in the shop at this time in the evening, not until she bumped right into the figure.

"I'm sorry!" she immediately apologised and she started to bow down in order to say sorry properly, when she recognised the blue-and-white zipped hoodie. "Haru?"

"Hikaru." She saw the basket hanging from the crook of his elbow and realised he was there to shop for dinner too. It didn't surprise her when the article on top in the basket was freshly packed fish. Probably mackerel.

"I, ah…" She fumbled for words. Really, after he'd left the restaurant yesterday, she'd felt confident she knew how to talk to him if she found him, but now – the day after – she wasn't so sure anymore. "Ah, do you know where the seaweed is? I need to get some."

His face was as blank as it always was when he walked over to the end of the aisle, took a pack off of the shelf and held it out to her. "This one?" he asked.

"Yeah, thanks." She held took it from his hand and started a bit when their skin touched. She was like a snowman compared to his warm hands. "Now I just need…" She thought about that for a second, sure there was something else Mrs Tachibana had asked for. _Something for desert please,_ she remembered the older woman saying. "Ice cream!"

Haru followed her as she went over to the frozen goods and took out two tubs of vanilla ice cream. That would go well with the apple cake Mrs Tachibana was going to put in the oven while dinner was being served.

"Is ice cream really okay?" Haru asked behind her and she turned around with both her eyebrows lifted.

"Why wouldn't it be?"

"It's cold out,' he replied, pointing his thumb at the exit.

"So? Ice cream makes everyone happy." She pulled a tub of chocolate chip and caramel ice cream from the freezer and put it in Haru's basket. "You should try it so you're not so cranky next time we go out for dinner."

Right after those words came out, she slammed her mouth shut. _I can't believe I said that!_ Trying to salvage some of her self-image, she quickly walked over to the counter, planning to dash like a coward as soon as she'd paid. Once she was outside, the plastic bag dangling from her fingers, she started walking home without waiting for Haru.

"Hikaru!"

She didn't turn, because she didn't have to. She waited for him to catch up with her, realising he would eventually do so anyway, since they were heading in the same direction.

"Can we talk somewhere?" Haru asked once he stood next to her. Hikaru tried to hide her surprise, but failed miserably once she looked into his eyes and saw the sincere expression that didn't show on the rest of his face.

"I've got ice cream," she said, knowing she should go home and get ready to host Mr Tachibana's boss.

"So do I." He held up his plastic bag of groceries and stepped closer to her as he lowered it again.

"We're expecting guests," she tried, still not able to look away from those blue eyes. To her, it was fascinating what she saw there, in contrast to his face.

She'd gotten used to Haru's stony expression, had started to figure out what the minute changes in his face meant, but never before had she looked him in the eyes and felt so sure that she understood him.

"It's just a few minutes," Haru promised.

"Okay," she answered.

* * *

Hikaru kept quiet as they walked home a bit further, before Haru stepped into one of the side alleys and she followed him.

"I wanted to say sorry for yesterday," he said as soon as she faced him again.

"It's okay," she hurried to say. _How can I even say that?_ she wondered. _Is it really okay for him to act that way?_ Her head seemed fuzzy when she tried to think of the right answer. _But he did come to say sorry,_ a voice in the back of her head added.

"I shouldn't have said that before, in the shop. It wasn't fair." She leaned her back against the high wall of one of the gardens forming the alley. Haru followed suit and set his plastic bag down next to him.

"I wasn't mad at you, you know," he said after a while. She turned her head to him and just when she was about to ask him how he knew she'd thought that, he answered the question in advance. "Makoto texted me this morning." He looked away from her, up to the moon that was currently a glob of white in between the clouds that drifted by.

"He told me that yesterday," Hikaru decided to mention. "Seems he was right again, then. But what I don't get is what you _were_ so angry about. One moment we were just talking and the next you were ready to rip someone's throat out. Rin was just comparing our names and then-"

Hikaru's breath hitched in her throat when a shadow passed over her as Haru pivoted on one foot and loomed over her within a second. With one of his forearms, he was leaning against the wall over her head. In the dark, the shadow his hair cast made it impossible to see his eyes properly.

He said something to her, his voice soft and breathy and over enunciating each syllable. It made anticipating chills run over her body as she could suddenly clearly remember what it had felt like: her heart beating crazily in her chest, the warmth swirling her stomach when he had pressed his lips against hers that night three weeks ago.

"Ka-ru-cha-n."

And then he was kissing her, and her hand fell open and she dropped her groceries to the ground, and his lips were moving and she didn't know what to do.

Like the last time, his mouth moved against hers once, twice, before he pulled back.

"Sorry, Hikaru," he uttered, but this time Hikaru was over the shock much faster. As he started to put some distance between them, she grabbed both sides of the zipper that was undone at the top of his hoodie and pulled him back towards her.

Haru stumbled back into leaning against the wall, Hikaru pressed between its cold surface and the boy she was now kissing back. It took him a second to react again, but then he sunk into the kiss, his free hand finding its way to the side of her face, his fingers combing her hair back and weaving into the locks that had come loose from her ponytail.

She didn't know exactly what she was doing, she didn't know if she was doing it right, but what she did know was this: she liked it. She liked it so much she didn't want it to end anytime soon.

Her hands let go of the fabric they were clutching and she moved them around his neck, pulling him flush against her. The minimal height difference between them made sure she didn't have to stand on her toes, that he didn't have to lean down, and that way, they kept it up a lot longer than either of them had expected.

"Hey, go find somewhere else to do that!" a voice called over from the street and Haru stepped away from Hikaru in surprise. On the main street, a middle-aged couple walked by and the man was glaring at them. "Damn brats don't have any sense of propriety anymore these days." Pulling his wife along with him, he started down the road again, leaving Haru and Hikaru in relative privacy again.

Once they had both gotten over the shock of being caught, a whole new embarrassment flushed over Hikaru and she looked at Haru, who dazedly noticed her lips were slightly swollen.

The cold wind rushed over her heated cheeks and she shivered. With a start, Hikaru remembered what she'd been sent out to do in the first place.

"I need to get home," she said, her voice uneven. Haru nodded and bent down to pick up both of their bags.

"I'll walk you."

* * *

**So? So? Whatdidyouthink? Bwaah the second half of this chapter was soo much fun to write and I can't wait to see you guys' reactions!**

**-*~ Q&A 2 on the way! **_Leave your questions in a review or a PM**!**_

**As always thank you immensely for reading! Please let me know what you thought by **_leaving a review_**! (yes, garbled messages are also welcome :p)**

**And some extra gratitude to the people who gave me a review, favourite of like over the past few hours (since the last update!):**

**DragonSlayer2187 **(well, action instead of tiptoeing was what you wanted, right?)**  
Molly Grace 16 **(I totally agree with you on how two-sided platonic love is great, that's why I saw the perfect oppertunity to write it when I started my fic)**  
EGUZMAN **(yup, Haru's stealing the show, as you can see)**  
C D Meiss **(oh, wow, you're lucky if you have a friend like Makoto! Don't ever lose sight of them uwu )**  
MachineWash **(wouldn't everybody be happier with a Makoto in their lives? though I think for me any of the swimmer boys showing up in real life would be cool. Though shark teeth would be kinda scary IRL)**  
ElodieKumari **(I get what you mean about the yaoi stuff. I mean, I can enjoy reading that from time to time, but to me it feels like its forced too (for this show at the very least). Oh, and I guess you can say Haru and Hikaru are starting to figure things out ;) ! )**  
NightWindAlchemist  
Mailumia  
**


	21. Chapter 20

_**A/N: I know some of you are kind of disappointed that the pairing in this story isn't MakoHika because Makoto is awesome and deserves the biggest and greatest love in the world. Sorry for that.**_

_**BUT! I am currently plotting out the storyline for a Makoto x OC story that I will start writing soon. I will let you guys know when it's up!**_

* * *

**Chapter 20: It's all so clear now!**

* * *

"Why are those people still in front of us?" Hikaru whispered to Haru, who walked so close to her, he only left a hair's width between them.

"I don't know," he answered plainly. His hand, holding one of the bags, brushed hers in a swing and Hikaru suppressed the impulse to grab it and kiss him again. Her blood was still pumping fast from a few minutes ago.

"I've never seen them in our neighbourhood. Maybe they're lost?" she mused. She absolutely didn't feel like helping the rude man out, not after he'd interrupted…

Heat filled her cheeks again and she pressed her lips together. _Am I ever going to stop blushing today?_ she thought, annoyed with herself and her light skin tone.

"They're…" Haru started saying, but Hikaru was already watching the pair walk up the steps to the Tachibana house and through the gate.

"They're Mr Tachibana's boss and his wife!" Hikaru clapped a hand over her mouth. _I promised to help Mr Tachibana get his raise! How am I going to do that now? _Her thoughts all jumbled together as she tried to concoct a plan.

"Hikaru." Haru pointed at the light streaming out the door as the boss and his wife were let inside. Hikaru walked ahead, Haru following immediately, and went up the steps carefully, just far enough that she could look over the fence and watch what was going on inside through the large window in the living room.

Sure enough, the man who'd interrupted her and Haru's kiss with a rude comment, was the same one sitting down on the Tachibana sofa, his wife next to him as he watched Ran and Ren play something other than the game they had set up in the kitchen before.

_That means dinner is almost ready,_ Hikaru thought,_ they're going to need that seaweed and ice cream soon._

"Haru, can you pass me my bag please?" she asked and Haru looked at her questioningly as he did so. "I've got a plan."

The two of them snuck into the garden quietly, careful not to let the gate slam shut, and walked around the house to the back, where Hikaru softly knocked on the kitchen window twice.

Within a few seconds, both Makoto and Mrs Tachibana were looking out of it and down at the two teenagers standing in the garden. The house was a little higher than the ground because of the extra layer of foundation lifting it up some thirty centimetres.

"Hikaru? Haru?" Makoto seemed confused. Mrs Tachibana just focussed on the girl that was supposed to be at her dinner table in a couple of minutes.

"Why aren't you coming in?" she asked.

"Trust me, you don't want me to," Hikaru answered, holding the bag up for Makoto to grab. "That boss, he won't like me and I'll blow uncle Ryousuke's chances."

"Why's that?"

Hikaru locked eyes with Haru and wasn't sure how she should explain.

"We ran into him on our way back from the store. He won't like me. So I'll go and hide out at Haru's until after they're gone, okay? Can you call when I can come back?"

"What are you going to do about dinner then?" Mrs Tachibana looked slightly worried at the idea of one of the children in her care not getting enough food at the right time.

"I can cook for two," Haru interjected when Hikaru was just about to say she'd wait until she was back.

"Well…" Mrs Tachibana looked at her son, who nodded. "If you say so," she said to him, only just loud enough for Hikaru to catch the words. "Well, since I know Haruka to be a proper young man, I'll be okay with it this time." She gave the two a stern look. "But only because it's important. I don't like you going off with just boys, Hikaru. Not after what Makoto told me happed at that study session."

Hikaru tried to hide her shocked face and she turned her gaze on Makoto, who held his hands up. "That Nagisa trying to make you kiss Rin. I don't like it." Hikaru let her breath escape and looked back at Mrs Tachibana, whose face softened again. "I'm sorry to ask this of you, Hikaru, dear."

"It's okay, I'm offering. We'll get going then." Hikaru was just glad that Makoto hadn't told his mother that Haru had kissed her back then. And that neither of them knew what had just played out between her and the black-haired boy, only a few streets down. She tugged Haru's sleeve as she walked by him, only to stop after a few steps and look back at the window. "The ice cream might have melted a little by now, sorry."

* * *

Hikaru didn't know what to do with her hands as she sat at Haru's kitchen table, watching him cook up dinner for the two of them.

After a lot of apologising for only having bought mackerel on his side and a lot of _no, it's fine_-s on her side, he'd unloaded his shopping bag and put on a dark blue apron. In Hikaru's eyes, the fact that there was a tiny little dolphin depicted on the front pocket was incredibly cute.

Now the whole kitchen was filled with all sorts of smells and they played on Hikaru's appetite. Though she was an alright cook, knowing the basics, she wasn't that great and she'd definitely never made anything that smelled as lovely as this.

"It's almost done," Haru announced. The sudden sound spooked Hikaru, but she managed to keep the squeak that rose in her throat in.

"Can I help?" Hikaru asked, getting up and walking towards him. _I just want something to keep my hands busy_. "Set the table maybe?"

Haru turned slightly so he could look at her. Holding the frying pan with one hand, he used the other to point at a cupboard. "It's all in there. We can sit in the living room."

Hikaru had already turned and walked over to the cupboard when she thought about his last words. "Living room?" she repeated, a little confused. There was a good enough table here in the kitchen, certainly big enough for the two of them.

"Kotatsu," Haru explained with as little words as possible. By now, Hikaru was used to it. Moving bowls and chopsticks to the table, she tried not to think about that kiss – those kisses. The air between her and Haru seemed heavy, like the sky before thunder, and it made it hard for her _not_ to stop and just stare at him.

_Was it even a good idea to spend the evening alone with him?_ Hikaru wondered. She had so many questions for him and she didn't know how to ask him. She felt like she only had time for so many of them before Haru would run out of words and keep quiet. Or kiss her again. She didn't know whether she'd be able to keep up a conversation if he kissed her again.

"Coming through," Haru's voice sounded behind her and Hikaru jumped out of the way automatically. Haru, holding the rice cooker in his hands, just gave her a blank look as he set it down on the floor.

With now scarlet cheeks, Hikaru sat down on the floor and lifted the blanket of the kotatsu so she could move her legs under it.

Haru sat down around the corner from her and his feet bumped into her legs. As Hikaru pulled her own legs in and crossed them, she wondered when she'd started being so hyperaware of Haru. She knew she'd never acted like this around him, not before…

"Your bowl." Hikaru looked up from the table to find Haru holding out a bowl of rice in one hand, the white rice scooper in the other. She took it from him and picked up her chopsticks, trying to avoid his gaze as much as possible.

When had that become a thing? Hadn't she always been fine sitting next to him, touching in some or other way? Hadn't she often been the one seeking out the contact?

All the way through dinner, she stole glances at Haru, who seemed to be unfazed by the thoughts that were running amok in her mind. Conversation was at an all-time low and that didn't help keep Hikaru from trying to recall the number of times she'd grabbed Haru's arm when they were walking, the number of times she'd crawled up against him when they were sitting next to each other, the times she'd happily rested her head on his shoulder, the times she'd run her fingers through his smooth, dark hair while he was too preoccupied with the game he and Makoto were playing…

If she'd done all that without feeling awkward, why was it now embarrassing to even accidentally bump into him? It had always felt so normal, so _natural_, to do those things, like it was with Makoto, but also completely different from that.

And there was no one else she felt so comfortable with, not in the way she did with Haru. Yes, Nagisa had the habit of hugging or clinging onto her, but that was just Nagisa's way of being friends with her.

Having emptied her bowl, Hikaru put it down on the table and her mind went back to that question she'd laid out in front of Makoto: why was Haru special too?

"Have you finished?" she asked Haru when she noticed his bowl was empty as well. He nodded and she stood up, collecting the tableware. "I'll do the washing up."

"No, you don't have-" Haru started, but Hikaru cut him off immediately.

"You already paid for and prepared dinner. Let me at least do this." She could feel his eyes on her as she carried everything to the kitchen and filled the sink up with hot water.

_Should I talk?_ she thought as she started washing off the first of the bowls. _I should talk, right? Do people talk in this kind of situation?_ Hikaru took a deep breath.

"You know, it was really good, Haru." She waited. He didn't answer. "Dinner, I mean," she added. "Where'd you learn to cook like that?"

"Thank you," she heard, not to far behind her and her fingers clasped the bowl a little tighter to make sure she didn't drop it. She turned slightly to see Haru had settled down on one of the chairs at the kitchen table. "My grandmother taught me."

"I see." Hikaru bit her lip, scrubbing out the frying pan. _Now how do I continue this conversation?_ she thought nervously. How had she done that in the past? Had she really held up a conversation with him before?

"My father… he has always been away on business like now and my mother often goes with him. When I was little, my grandmother used to look after me during those times neither of my parents was home. She taught me how to cook. I like it."

Hikaru thought about how she should reply to his. She hadn't expected Haru to give her such an elaborate answer, let alone such a personal one.

"Well, you're really good at it," she finally decided. After putting the frying pan onto the drainer, she turned around. "Do you have a tea towel?"

Haru nodded and got up to pull one out of a drawer in the cupboard that also held the tableware. He passed it to her quietly, without looking her in the eye.

Hikaru dried, Haru put everything away. This time, Hikaru didn't feel the silence between them was awkward. If anything, it was a little sad. She watched him add their cups to the stack in the cupboard, wondering what it would be like to live on your own. She'd have been living on her own if the Tachibana's hadn't taken her in.

"It seems kind of lonely," she commented and Haru turned around, making eye contact for the first time in a while. "Living here all alone," Hikaru elaborated.

"I'm okay being alone." Though his facial expression was still mostly blank, Hikaru felt he was confused at her comment. Haru walked over to her, stopping not too far in front of her.

"I know you are," she said, searching those blue eyes for a hint of what was going through him. "I just mean…" She averted her eyes and tugged at the tea towel she was holding between her hands. "I meant…" She let out her breath and turned her face back up. "I think you shouldn't _have_ to be okay with it."

Haru's eyes widened, if only the slightest bit. It took Hikaru a second to realise that what she'd said might have been poking into personal business. She turned around quickly, wiping the counter with the towel. She chuckled nervously. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to pry and I shouldn't have said that and-"

Her breath hitched in her throat when she felt two arms close around her as Haru hugged her to his chest. Her hands stilled and she felt his breath on her jaw as he rested his chin on her shoulder.

"Is this okay?" he asked her and she felt his words tug at something in her stomach. She relaxed and leaned back against him.

"Yes," she answered, though it came out just a whisper. _It's so warm. _She raised her hands and closed them over his.

In that moment, she understood the answer to that question she'd asked Makoto. Though she hadn't been acting like a lovesick puppy, though she hadn't felt butterflies swarming around in her stomach every time she saw him, she understood the answer. Haru wasn't just familiar, she _wanted_ him to be familiar. He wasn't just close to her, she'd been closing the distance between them ever since they'd first properly talked that day in his house.

"Haru?"

"Hmm?" He buried his nose in her hair and Hikaru felt a shiver run through her as his breath hit her ear. She closed her eyes.

"I think I'm in love with you."

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**ANNOUNCEMENT: well, I thought maybe you guys would like to see the picture I drew of Haru and Hikaru in the alley from last chapter ;) the link is up in my profile!**

**Thank you all for reading! I had a little bit of trouble getting this chapter out because I couldn't decide exactly how Hikaru was going to react to it all, so that's why it's a little later than you might have expected.**

**If you have any comments or thoughts on this chapter or the story in general, **_please leave me a review_**! They are very much appreciated. uwu**

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**Another special thanks to all the people that reviewed since the last chapter update, as well as the ones that clicked follow or favourite:**

**MachineWash **(creepy music is always playing around me ;p the reason Haru had to catch up with Hikaru is that he still had to pay for his groceries. Hikaru took off after paying and so Haru was stuck at the counter for a bit before following)**  
DragonSlayer2187  
Hiname  
EGUZMAN **(Makoto's reaction? it's coming up soon)**  
ElodieKumari94 **(oh, I'd love to see some romance come into the picture in the second season *cough* SEIGOU *cough*)**  
wolf-hanyou-girl1999  
Ballad of the Fallen  
C D Meiss **(I'm really glad you're enjoying the backstory too. And please don't die! I love getting your reviews :p Also, no, it's not that weird. I kept thinking that too when I was writing it and wondering whether the time I was taking out was too long for their icecream to still be edible.)**  
oXo Akino oXo  
IsntThatIronic **(HARUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU)**  
Sakuno **(hehe, I think there might be more HikaRin shippers now that I've added him to the story)**  
TheCrazyMe  
sadtenshi  
demon419  
Azuki Bean  
Ava Nova  
**


	22. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21: Confessions!**

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"I think I'm in love with you."

The grip Haru had on her tightened and Hikaru could have sworn everyone in a two-mile radius would be able to hear her heart beat. When he didn't react for the longest time, she said his name.

"Haru?"

"Hmm?" He just pushed his nose further into her hair. She could feel the tip of it against the side of her neck.

"Are you okay?" She'd thought that confessing her feelings was the most logical step after realising them, but she could be wrong. _Was I supposed to wait a while, like in the books?_ She didn't have a clue.

She'd had a boyfriend before, in middle school, when her mother was still alive, but they had broken up when Hikaru stopped coming to school. Actually, she'd broken up with him, because, she'd reasoned, the time she spent with him was better spent with her terminal mother.

But Keitaro-kun had confessed to her, had asked her out. She hadn't ever confessed to him, because even though she went out with him, her feelings had never run deep enough for her to call them love.

But now, with Haru… was she supposed to not say anything yet? Comparing her situation to the ones in the books she'd read, she knew the events were out of order anyway. After all, they'd kissed already.

A blush crept up Hikaru's cheeks as she thought of that kiss, while waiting for Haru's answer.

That answer came in the form of a kiss pressed to her cheek and two words that made her heart skip a beat.

"I'm happy."

A smile broke through on Hikaru's face and she pulled Haru's arms off of her a bit so she could turn around in his embrace. Without thinking, without hesitating, she pressed her lips to his.

"I'm glad," she murmured against his lips, before he stole another kiss from her.

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Feeling groggy, Hikaru opened her eyes, annoyed at the shrill sound of the doorbell. Someone was talking, though it was too far for her to hear the words. One look at the clock told her it was already past ten.

"Hikaru?"

She turned her head to see an upside-down Makoto in the doorway to the hall.

"Mako-chan," she murmured, still not completely awake. Something was bugging her cheek, making it hurt a little. She fished whatever it was from under her face.

_Controller?_ she wondered. _Oh, right, we were playing a game._

"Come on, Hikaru, we've got to go home. It's late." Listening to her childhood friend, Hikaru sat up and stretched.

"Yes, yes, I'm coming." She moved the kotatsu blanket off her legs, shivering at the sudden cold. "Aaah, I'm so tired."

Hikaru yawned as she stood up and walked over to Makoto, who had already turned. On her way out, she faced Haru, who was standing by the door.

"Thanks for tonight. Bye, now," she mumbled, giving him a quick peck on the lips before she stepped out to follow Makoto, who hadn't seen any of it. "Goodnight. Makoto, wait up."

As she stumbled after Makoto, still half asleep, she heard footsteps behind her too.

"Hikaru," Haru said behind her, not too loud, but easy to be heard. "Go out with me."

Without realising her best friend was making the same movement, just with a lot more surprised expression, she turned around and gave Haru a lazy smile.

"Of course."

"Eh?! Where did that just come from?!"

"Goodnight." Hikaru waved at Haru, then turned around again, walking past Makoto, who's jaw would have hit the ground if it were physically possible. It took him a while to recover from the shock and by then, Haru had stepped back into his house.

Hikaru, in the meantime, had started walking down the steps towards home.

"Hikaru! Wait!" Makoto caught up with her easily. "What's this about?"

"What's what about?" Hikaru asked, grinning to herself and feigning ignorance. The cold night air had woken her up properly now.

"You… you and Haru! And… going out? How did that happen?" Hikaru glanced at her friend as she kept walking.

"Oh, it's just… we talked."

Makoto raised an eyebrow at her. "You talked."

"About why he was mad." As soon as she said it, her eyebrows furrowed. She'd brought up the subject, but that was when Haru had… _Right, we didn't actually talk about that._

"And?"

"And now he asked me to go out with him." She turned ninety degrees to her left at the bottom of the steps and started up the few stone steps to the house's gate. "You heard that, right?"

"Of course I did, that's why I'm asking."

"Well, that's all there is to it." Hikaru pulled the sliding door open and stepped inside, happily kicking off her shoes. Though she dead tired and ready to fall asleep as soon as she hit her matrass, she couldn't have been happier in that moment.

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Monday came, and with that midterms for the second term were only two days away. Hikaru would have to work her way through her subjects from Wednesday to Friday and she was dreading the moment she'd have to take her History test.

"Nagisaaaaaa," she whined at the exact tone he always used when he wanted something, "pleaaaaase help me study for historyyyy." She followed him into classroom 2-1, tugging on his shirt.

"But it's impossible to teach you!" Nagisa countered. Hikaru had already known he wouldn't help her after that disastrous study session last time, but she still wanted to try.

She pulled out a chair from an empty desk and set her bento down on the desk in the back by the window. It was only when she sat down that Haru stopped staring out the window and noticed the two first-years were there.

"Hi," Hikaru said, a smile on her face. As she opened her bento up, revealing an array of different foods next to a portion of rice, she couldn't help thinking _I am dating this guy. I am sitting next to my boyfriend. Haru's my boyfriend_. Then she noticed the side of the table across from Haru was empty. "Where's Makoto?"

"Toilet," Haru explained in one word. Hikaru watched him reach onto his schoolbag, that hung from the side of his desk, and produce a bento too. It didn't surprise her or Nagisa that it contained rice and mackerel.

"Sheesh, Haru, you need to watch your diet," Hikaru commented. She started grabbing some of the vegetables from her own lunch box and transferring them to his. "I figured you'd know how to take care of yourself after living on your own for so long."

Nagisa gave an amused chuckle. "Haru-chan can survive on just mackerel." He sat down to Hikaru's right side, leaving the spot next to the window for Makoto. From the plastic bag he'd been carrying, he produced several single-packed rolls and pastries.

"And you can survive on just sugar, it seems," Hikaru commented. Nagisa gave her a guilty smile as he, with a crackle, opened the plastic packing of a roll of melon bread. He held it out to Haru.

"Do you want some, Haru-chan?" the blond asked and Haru moved his chair back a bit.

"No, thank you."

"Nagi, I told you to stop trying to feed people." Though she honestly meant it, she chuckled. She couldn't help being in a good mood today.

Nagisa just stuck his tongue out to her and started munching on his melon bread. As they ate their lunches, Hikaru looked at the door several times.

"Are you sure Makoto was just going to the toilet?" Hikaru asked Haru after a while. "He's still not back and lunch hour is almost over."

"It's what he said," Haru answered and Hikaru watched him closely to see whether she could see the signs of worry on his face too, instead of just _knowing_ he was worried for Makoto.

"Well, lunch hour is pretty much over, so we should be heading back." Hikaru got up and moved her chair back to the desk it belonged to. Next to her, Nagisa did the same. "See you after school?" she asked Haru, beaming a smile at him.

"Yes, see you."

Hikaru turned around and Nagisa followed suit quickly, waving goodbye to Haru. "You know, maybe Makoto is just a little annoyed," the boy said next to her. As Hikaru looked at him, asking him what he meant, she couldn't help but wonder when and if Nagisa was going to grow taller than her.

"Well, you know," Nagisa said, throwing her a sly grin, "maybe he feels a little left out since his two best friends are going out now."

Though Hikaru was extremely surprised and was burning with curiosity as to how Nagisa had figured it out before she'd told _anyone_, she didn't show it to the younger boy.

_Nothing_ was going to ruin her day, because she was sure, when she said goodbye to Haru, that the tiniest of smiles had shown on his face.

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**A/N: sorry that this chapter is so short and crappy! It's kind of a bridging chapter, not just for Feeling Free! but also to the Makoto x OC spinoff! It's going to be called "A Song So Free!" and the first chapter will be up VERY SOON, so please bear with me for a little bit longer!**

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**About "A Song So Free!": there are going to be a few overlaps with this story of course, a couple of the situations from this story might be repeated in "A Song So Free!". It should not be getting boring though, because those scenes will be from Makoto's POV in "A Song So Free!" beause the POV of that story will be switching between Makoto and the OCs.**

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**If you want, please **_leave me a review_** with your thoughts and/or comments on this chapter or the story in general!**

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**A big thank-you to all you lovely readers, especially the ones that reviewed or clicked favourite or follow since the last chapter update:**

**Molly Grace 16 **_(I don't know what it is with fanfiction lately, I've been getting more messages from people saying they weren't getting the chapter update alerts__)_**  
Isntthatironic  
MachineWash **_(you are absolutely right about Hikaru's personality: she wouldn't beat around the bushes with something like this, she's very honest and can even be a bit blunt at times, but that's all part of her charm, right ;)_ _)_**  
DragonSlayer2187  
mikashiro **_(yeah, I know people had been wondering what the pairing was going to be for sure, but I don't like announcing the pairing up front because I think it takes away a bit of the anticipation/suspension in the story. I'm a bit sad that the pairing for "A Song So Free!" is known even before I post the first chapter)_**  
ElodieKumari94 **_(OMFG RIGHT, RIGHT? I wanna see SeiGou and AmaGoro so, so badly! But especially SeiGou because I think captain Mikoshiba is adorable. Also, some of the info about the Makoto x OC is further up in case you scrolled past it!)**  
**_**Ariel-chan01**_**  
**_


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